Macau

== Government and politics ==
{{main|Government of Macau|Politics of Macau|Elections in Macau}}

[[File:Assembleia Legislativa.jpg|thumb|The legislature meets in the [[Macau Legislative Assembly Building|Legislative Assembly Building]] in [[Sé, Macau|Sé]].]]

Macau is a [[Special administrative regions of China|special administrative region of China]], with executive, legislative, and judicial powers devolved from the [[Government of China|national government]].<ref name="CastellucciBLFundamentals">{{harvnb|Castellucci|2012|pp=674–675}}.</ref> The [[Joint Declaration on the Question of Macau|Sino-Portuguese Joint Declaration]] provided for economic and administrative continuity through the [[Handover of Macau|handover]], resulting in an executive-led governing system largely inherited from the territory's history as a Portuguese colony.<ref>{{harvnb|Chan|2003|pp=506–507}}.</ref> Under these terms and the "[[one country, two systems]]" principle, the [[Macao Basic Law|Basic Law of Macao]] is the regional [[constitution]].<ref>{{harvnb|Krebs|2000|pp=122–124}}.</ref> Because negotiations for the Joint Declaration and Basic Law began after transitional arrangements for Hong Kong were made, Macau's structure of government is very similar to Hong Kong's.<ref>{{harvnb|Castellucci|2012|pp=672–676}}.</ref>

The regional government is composed of three branches:
* ''Executive:'' The [[Chief Executive of Macau|Chief Executive]] is responsible for enforcing regional law,<ref name="BLM50">{{harvnb|Basic Law}} Chapter IV Article 50.</ref> can force reconsideration of legislation,<ref>{{harvnb|Basic Law}} Chapter IV Article 51.</ref> and appoints [[Executive Council of Macau|Executive Council]] members, a portion of the legislature, and principal officials.<ref name="BLM50" /> Acting with the Executive Council, the Chief Executive can propose new bills, issue [[Primary and secondary legislation|subordinate legislation]],<ref>{{harvnb|Basic Law}} Chapter IV Article 58.</ref> and has authority to dissolve the legislature.<ref>{{harvnb|Basic Law}} Chapter IV Article 52.</ref>
* ''Legislature:'' The unicameral [[Legislative Assembly of Macau|Legislative Assembly]] enacts regional law, approves budgets, and has the power to impeach a sitting Chief Executive.<ref>{{harvnb|Basic Law}} Chapter IV Article 71.</ref>
* ''Judiciary:'' The [[Court of Final Appeal (Macau)|Court of Final Appeal]] and [[Judiciary of Macau|lower courts]], whose judges are appointed by the Chief Executive on the advice of a recommendation commission,<ref>{{harvnb|Basic Law}} Chapter IV Article 87.</ref> interpret laws and overturn those inconsistent with the Basic Law.<ref>{{harvnb|Basic Law}} Chapter VIII Article 143.</ref>

The Chief Executive is the head of government, and serves for a maximum of two five-year terms.<ref>{{harvnb|Basic Law}} Chapter IV Article 48.</ref> The [[State Council of the People's Republic of China|State Council]] (led by the [[Premier of the People's Republic of China|Premier of China]]) appoints the Chief Executive after nomination by the Election Committee, which is composed of 400 business, community, and government leaders.<ref>{{harvnb|Chief Executive Election Results|2014}}.</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Basic Law}} Chapter IV Article 47.</ref>

The Legislative Assembly has 33 members, each serving a four-year term: 14 are [[Directly elected member (Macau)|directly elected]], 12 [[Indirectly elected member|indirectly elected]], and 7 [[Appointed Member of the Legislative Assembly|appointed]] by the Chief Executive.<ref>{{harvnb|Chan|2003|p=506}}.</ref> Indirectly elected assemblymen are selected from limited electorates representing sectors of the economy or special interest groups.<ref>{{harvnb|Yu|Chin|2012|pp=97–98}}.</ref> All directly elected members are chosen with [[proportional representation]].<ref>{{harvnb|Yu|Chin|2012|p=103}}.</ref>

Twelve political parties had representatives elected to the Legislative Assembly in the [[2017 Macanese legislative election|2017 election]].<ref>{{harvnb|Legislative Assembly Election Results|2017}}.</ref> These parties have aligned themselves into two ideological groups: the [[Pro-Beijing camp (Macau)|pro-establishment]] (the current government) and [[Pro-democracy camp (Macau)|pro-democracy]] camps.<ref>{{harvnb|Li|2016|pp=527–528}}.</ref> Macau is represented in the [[National People's Congress]] by 12 deputies chosen through an electoral college, and 29 delegates in the [[Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference]] appointed by the [[State Council of the People's Republic of China|central government]].<ref name="nationalReps" />

Macau has generally congenial relations with China's central government.<ref name=":1" />{{Rp|page=182}}

[[File:Macau Government Headquarters 01.JPG|left|thumb|The [[Macau Government Headquarters]] is the official office of the [[Chief Executive of Macau|Chief Executive]].]]
[[Law of the People's Republic of China|Chinese national law]] does not generally apply in the region, and Macau is treated as a separate jurisdiction.<ref name="CastellucciBLFundamentals" /> Its judicial system is based on [[Law of Portugal|Portuguese civil law]], continuing the legal tradition established during colonial rule. Interpretative and amending power over the Basic Law and jurisdiction over acts of state lie with the central authority, however, making regional courts ultimately subordinate to the mainland's [[socialist law|socialist]] [[Civil law (legal system)|civil law]] system. Decisions made by the [[Standing Committee of the National People's Congress]] can also override territorial judicial processes.<ref>{{harvnb|Castellucci|2012|pp=675–677}}.</ref> In 2021, after similar actions were taken in Hong Kong following the [[2019–2020 Hong Kong protests|protests]] associated with the Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill Movement, 21 candidates running for office in the territorial elections were disqualified as a result of allegedly failing to support the Basic Law, although no specific violations were noted by the territory's electoral commission.<ref name="davidson">{{cite news |last1=Davidson |first1=Helen |title=China bans pro-democracy candidates in Macau elections |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/13/china-bans-pro-democracy-candidates-in-macau-elections |access-date=26 August 2021 |work=The Guardian |date=13 July 2021 |archive-date=26 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826172845/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/13/china-bans-pro-democracy-candidates-in-macau-elections |url-status=live}}</ref>

The territory's jurisdictional independence is most apparent in its [[Visa policy of Macau|immigration]] and taxation policies. The Identification Department issues [[Macao Special Administrative Region passport|passports]] for permanent residents which differ from those issued by the mainland or Hong Kong, and the region maintains a regulated border with the rest of the country.<ref>{{harvnb|Law No. 8/1999, Law about Permanent Resident and Right of Abode in the Macao Special Administrative Region}}.</ref> All travellers between Macau and China and Hong Kong must pass border controls, regardless of nationality.<ref>
{{cite web |url=http://en.macaotourism.gov.mo/plan/entry_requirements_detail.php?id=1 |title=Entry Requirements – Passports and Visas |publisher=Tourism Office |access-date=7 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190209132322/http://en.macaotourism.gov.mo/plan/entry_requirements_detail.php?id=1 |archive-date=9 February 2019 |url-status=live}}
</ref> Chinese citizens resident in mainland China do not have the [[right of abode in Macau]] and are subject to immigration controls.<ref>{{harvnb|Basic Law}} Chapter III Article 24.</ref> Public finances are handled separately from the national government, and taxes levied in Macau do not fund the central authority.<ref>{{harvnb|Basic Law}} Chapter V Article 104.</ref>

The [[Macao Garrison]] is responsible for the region's defence. Although the [[Chairman of the Central Military Commission (China)|Chairman of the Central Military Commission]] is [[Supreme Military Command of the People's Republic of China|supreme commander]] of the armed forces,<ref>{{harvnb|Constitution of the People's Republic of China}} Chapter 3 §&nbsp;4 (93).</ref> the regional government may request assistance from the garrison.<ref>{{harvnb|Wang|2018|p=171}}.</ref> Macau residents are not required to perform military service and the law also has no provision for local enlistment, so its defence force is composed entirely of nonresidents.<ref>{{harvnb|Ho|2018}}.</ref>

The [[State Council of the People's Republic of China|State Council]] and the [[Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China|Ministry of Foreign Affairs]] handle diplomatic matters, but Macau retains the ability to maintain separate economic and cultural [[Foreign relations of Macau|relations with foreign nations]].<ref>{{harvnb|Basic Law}} Chapter II Article 12.</ref> The territory negotiates its own trade agreements and actively participates in supranational organisations, including agencies of the [[World Trade Organization]] and [[United Nations]].<ref>
{{cite web |url=https://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/countries_e/macao_china_e.htm |title=Macao, China in the WTO |publisher=[[World Trade Organization]] |access-date=7 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190209180152/https://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/countries_e/macao_china_e.htm |archive-date=9 February 2019 |url-status=live}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite web |url=https://www.unescap.org/about/member-states |title=ESCAP Member States and Associate Members |publisher=[[United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific]] |access-date=7 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181228155606/https://www.unescap.org/about/member-states |archive-date=28 December 2018 |url-status=live}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite web |url=http://www.fmcoprc.gov.mo/eng/ytygjzz/tyyflsw/314/t241610.htm |title=List of Agreements Concluded by the Macao SAR Government under Authorization by the Central People's Government |publisher=[[Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China in the Macao Special Administrative Region]] |access-date=7 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190209124542/http://www.fmcoprc.gov.mo/eng/ytygjzz/tyyflsw/314/t241610.htm |archive-date=9 February 2019 |url-status=live}}
</ref> The regional government maintains trade offices in Greater China and other nations.<ref>{{harvnb|External Relations Facts|2018}}.</ref>

Public political demonstrations in Macau are generally rare.<ref name=":1" />{{Rp|page=182}}

===Lusophonia membership===
Macau is not a member of the [[Community of Portuguese Language Countries]], despite Portuguese being one of its official languages. This is due to it not being a sovereign nation, but a subnational division of China. In 2006, during the II Ministerial meeting between China and Portuguese Speaking Countries, the CPLP Executive Secretary and Deputy ambassador Tadeu Soares invited the Chief Executive of the Government of the Macau Special Administrative Region, Edmund Ho, to request the Associate Observer status for Macau. The Government of Macau has yet to make this request. In 2016, Murade Murargy, then executive secretary of CPLP said in an interview that Macau's membership is a complicated question, since like the [[Galicia (Spain)|Galicia region]] in [[Spain]], it is not an independent country, but only a part of China.<ref name="PontoFinal_2016-10-29">{{Cite web |last=Murargy |first=Murade |date=29 October 2016 |title=Adesáo de Macau á CPLP é questáo complicada, diz Murargy |url=https://pontofinalmacau.wordpress.com/2016/10/29/adesao-de-macau-a-cplp-e-questao-complicada-diz-murargy/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803185347/https://pontofinalmacau.wordpress.com/2016/10/29/adesao-de-macau-a-cplp-e-questao-complicada-diz-murargy/ |archive-date=3 August 2020 |access-date=2 June 2020 |website=pontofinalmacau.wordpress.com |quote=Mais difícil será, na perspectiva de Murade Murargy, urna eventual adesáo á CPLP de territorios, como a Regiáo Administrativa Especial de Macau ou a Galiza, ou, por outro lado, de comunidades luso-descendentes espalhadas pela Asia: "Isso nao, porque os territorios estáo dentro de países", afirmou Murargy, que lembrou no entanto que a China tem utilizado a Regiáo Administrativa Especial de Macau como urna plataforma para a cooperacáo com os países lusófonos, através do Fórum Macau}}</ref> However, the ''Instituto Internacional de Macau'' ({{lang|zh-Hant-MO|澳門國際研究所}})<!--Chinese from https://www.iimacau.org.mo/--> and the [[University of Saint Joseph|University of São José]] are Consultative Observers of the CPLP.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Comunidade dos Países de Língua Portuguesa |date=5 September 2011 |title=Notícia - Seminário Festlatino de Macau |url=https://www.cplp.org/id-4447.aspx?Action=1&NewsId=1732&currentPage=73&M=NewsV2&PID=10872 |access-date=5 November 2021 |website=www.cplp.org |archive-date=26 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220526110006/https://www.cplp.org/id-4447.aspx?Action=1&NewsId=1732&currentPage=73&M=NewsV2&PID=10872 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Rocheleau |first=Jake |title=CPLP Consultative Observer - USJ |url=https://www.usj.edu.mo/en/international/observer-networks/ |access-date=5 November 2021 |website=USJ Macao |language=en |archive-date=5 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211105135157/https://www.usj.edu.mo/en/international/observer-networks/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Administrative divisions ===
{{Main|Municipalities and parishes of Macau}}
[[File:Administrative Division of Macau.png|thumb|Administrative divisions of Macau]]
The territory is divided into seven parishes. [[Cotai]], a major area developed on reclaimed land between [[Taipa]] and [[Coloane]], and areas of the [[Macau New Urban Zone]] do not have defined parishes.<ref name="parishes">{{cite web |title=Area of parishes |url=https://www.dscc.gov.mo/ENG/knowledge/geo_statistic.html |publisher=Cartography and Cadastre Bureau |access-date=7 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180929085121/http://www.dscc.gov.mo/ENG/knowledge/geo_statistic.html |archive-date=29 September 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Historically, the parishes belonged to one of two municipalities (the [[Municipality of Macau]] or the [[Municipality of Ilhas]]) that were responsible for administering municipal services. The municipalities were abolished in 2001 and superseded by the [[Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau]] in providing local services.<ref>{{harvnb|Law No. 9/2018, Creation of the Institute for Municipal Affairs}}.</ref>

{| class="wikitable "
! Parish/Area
! Chinese
! Area<br>(km<sup>2</sup>)<ref name="parishes" />
|-
!colspan="3"| Parishes
|-
| [[Nossa Senhora de Fátima, Macau|Nossa Senhora de Fátima]]
| {{lang|zh-hant|花地瑪堂區}}
| 3.2
|-
| [[Santo António, Macau|Santo António]]
| {{lang|zh-hant|花王堂區}}
| 1.1
|-
| [[São Lázaro]]
| {{lang|zh-hant|望德堂區}}
| 0.6
|-
| [[São Lourenço, Macau|São Lourenço]]
| {{lang|zh-hant|風順堂區}}
| 1.0
|-
| [[Sé, Macau|Sé]] ''(including [[Macau New Urban Zone|New District Zone B]])''
| {{lang|zh-hant|大堂區 (包括新城B區)}}
| 3.4
|-
| [[Taipa|Nossa Senhora do Carmo]]<br> ''(including [[Macau New Urban Zone|New District Zone E]])''
| {{lang|zh-hant|嘉模堂區 (包括新城E區)}}
| 7.9
|-
| [[Coloane|São Francisco Xavier]]
| {{nowrap|{{lang|zh-hant|聖方濟各堂區}}}}
| 7.6
|-
!colspan="3"| Other areas
|-
| [[Cotai]]
| {{lang|zh-hant|路氹填海區}}
| 6.0
|-
| [[Macau New Urban Zone|New District Zone A]]
| {{lang|zh-hant|新城A區}}
| 1.4
|-
| [[Macau New Urban Zone|HZMB Zhuhai-Macau Port]]
| {{lang|zh-hant|港珠澳大橋珠澳口岸}}
| 0.7
|-
| [[University of Macau]] ([[Hengqin]] campus)
| {{lang|zh-hant|澳門大學 (橫琴校區)}}
| 1.0
|}