Portuguese researcher re-launches ‘Timeline of Macau History’

History professor and researcher Beatriz Basto da Silva has launched a new edition of her book ‘Timeline of Macau History,” comprising the history of Macau from the 16th century up until 1999.
“I worked on this latest edition because I still had things to say. The reason behind this edition is that I’ve put all my effort, yet again, into writing [about the last years before the handover] because this never really stops. There’s always something more that we can do, and researching is a passion I have,” she said on the sidelines of a ceremony, held at Clube Militar recently, to launch the book’s new edition.
The author said that the previous edition was already sold out. And now the extended version of “Timeline of Macau History” is available again in five volumes.
For Professor Beatriz, her books show how the Portuguese and Chinese communities did not live as far apart as they sometimes may appear: “The two communities were closer than history sometimes tells us.”
She added that data shows these two cultures were trying to come as close to each other as possible, and that even Macau’s neighborhoods come to prove such an idea, as we can see both Chinese and Portuguese heritage almost side by side. “This means that the two communities lived close to one another, and that there weren’t ‘barriers’ between them,” she said.
Professor Beatriz acknowledges that the two communities have had their issues, but they have been able to resolve them throughout time. “Of course, issues take time to be resolved. But we overcome them.”
The five volumes go through Macau’s major events between the 16th century and 1999. Professor Beatriz acknowledges that she would be interested to see her books translated into English, but that it should be done by an academic institution with the suitable ability and knowledge to translate such a timeline.
Professor Beatriz stressed that someone should also continue her work – perhaps one of her students.