Portuguese presence survives because of cultural and historical value

Portuguese political analyst, historian and politician José Pacheco Pereira said yesterday that the presence of his home country nowadays in Macau is an anachronism, a misplacement in time. However, in a conversation with local media at the University of Macau he explained that this brings many benefits to the city. “It is very clear that the Portuguese presence in Macau is an anachronism in a certain sense, which is not a problem even if we use the word in a pejorative way. It is an anachronism as it is attached to a certain period of time and it survives because of the cultural and historical value”, the former Vice President of the European Parliament said. “Of course, this presence adds value even in economic terms to Macau; but also in many other ways. We cannot look at the Portuguese presence in the territory as something it is not anymore. But we have to face it as it really is”, he added. “This anachronism also happens in other places where there’s a Portuguese presence such as Goa or Malacca, where people kept Portuguese names or the law system”. However, Pacheco Pereira said that this Portuguese presence can be very useful for the region and make it more international. “This is very useful for the Macau Government because one government that has conscience values difference. Of course, the main difference for Macau is the fact that it is the capital of gambling and it provides a lot of money for the region. Still, the Portuguese presence in Macau provides an international dimension to the region”, he said. “Of course, there’s also the tourism side which is profitable to the region.” Sino-Portuguese relations The politician also commented on Portugal’s Golden Visa policy, which became very popular for Chinese citizens, which, in exchange for an investment of 500,000 euros on a property would give them the right to live in the country. However, the scheme was suspended for some time following a major corruption scandal involving top Portuguese officials. “Eventually, the Golden Visa scheme will be normalised and there will be no problems in terms of the relationships between Portugal and China,” the politician said. “Still, the scheme got a bad reputation in Portugal because it was linked to a corruption scandal. In fact, it had never had a good reputation because the scheme was launched during an economic crisis when people are more sensitive to inequalities. At that moment, it seemed that everything could be bought with money, including nationality,” he said. On another note, José Pacheco Pereira believes that tensions between Portugal and China may arise from other deals involving the Chinese ownership of Portuguese companies that control strategic sectors in the country such as the power network. “In some cases where Chinese companies are controlling strategic sectors in Portugal such as REN (company managing the Portuguese National Electric System where State Grid Corporation of China is a major shareholder) may create some problems”, he stated. “This agreement was reached because of pressure from the European Union. But this is a problem for the Portuguese Government not for the Chinese buyer, who naturally looked after its interests”, he said. José Pacheco Pereira was in Macau for the second time to participate in the Script Road event. He first visited the territory during the Portuguese Administration, when he attended the opening ceremony of the Cultural Centre.