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The Secretary for Transport and Public Works, Mr Lau Si Io, left for the Guangdong province this morning for a three-day courtesy vist, during which he would visit some large-scale infrastructures, such as the metro railway and airport in Guangzhou and water-supply facilities. The policy secretary, who led a delegation with fourteen members, told the media before his departure that Macao would soon start a series of projects relating transportation, such as the expansion of the Macao International Airport, hence this trip would enable them to take Guangzhou and Zhuhai’s experience as reference. Being asked the feasibility of inter-city rail transport construction connecting Zhuhai to Macao, Mr Lau said the project had been sent to the Guangdong-Macao Infrantstructure Committee for further discussion, adding that he would exchange opinion with his counterparts during the trip. The delegation will return Macao on Friday. Delegates include the Chief of Office of the Secretary for Transport and Public Works, Mr Wong Chan Tong, the Director of Port Authority, Ms Wong Soi Man, the Acting President of Environment Council, Ms Vong Man Hung, the Office for the Development of Energy Sector, Mr Arnaldo Santos, the deputy directors of Land, Public Works and Transport Bureau, Mr Canfeng Li and Mr Chan Hong Kit, etc.
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The “Road Traffic Law” will become effective on October 1, 2007. In order to strengthen the public’s knowledge on this new law, the Public Security Police Force, the Land, Public Works and Transport Bureau, the Legal Affairs Bureau and the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau published the “Road Traffic Law” booklets for free distribution to the citizens. The extremely warm welcome shown by the citizens reflected their high attention on the new law. In order to coordinate the different needs of the public, we now have various topics of leaflets concerning “Road Traffic Law”, namely, “New provisions that citizens have to pay special attention”, “Pedestrians”, “Tourists”, “Vehicle drivers”, “Motorcycles and velocipedes” and “Heavy vehicles and trucks”. In view of the different publics, the information is presented succinctly so that the citizens may easily grasp the details to their concern. All of the above leaflets are available in either Chinese, English or Portuguese, at the law information stands of the Legal Affairs Bureau and the various district service centres of the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau. The law information stands can be found in many locations, including Health Centres, Conde S. Januario Hospital, Civil Registry, Real Estate Registry, Commerce and Movable Registry, Public Notary Offices, Finance Services Bureau, Identification Bureau, Post Office, University of Macau, Macao Polytechnic Institute, Centre of Permanent Education, Centre of Educational Activities of Taipa, Macau Electricity Company, etc. Citizens who have any queries concerning the “Road Traffic Law” are welcome to make their enquiries, during office hours, through the Law Promotion Hotline 9872233 of the Legal Affairs Bureau, or visit the website about “Road Traffic Law”: www.dsaj.gov.mo/trafficlaw.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service showed that in the second quarter of 2007, the overall average daily nominal wage of construction workers was MOP524, of which the average wage of skilled workers & semi-skilled workers was MOP549 and that of the unskilled workers was MOP344. Among the various occupations of skilled workers & semi-skilled workers, the truck drivers had the highest average wage of MOP602. In the second quarter of 2007, the overall nominal wage index declined by 1.3% from the previous quarter. The nominal wage index of skilled workers & semi-skilled workers fell by 1.3% and that of unskilled workers dropped by 1.4%. In terms of occupation of skilled workers & semi-skilled workers, the nominal wage index of carpenters registered the largest decline of 9.6%, while that of the painters and plant operators decreased by 8.7% and 8.1% respectively; however, the wage index of truck drivers registered an increase of 10.3%. In real terms, the overall wage index for the second quarter of 2007 declined by 3.0% over the preceding quarter, of which the real wage index of skilled workers & semi-skilled workers and unskilled workers went down by 3.0% and 3.1% respectively. Compared with the same quarter of 2006, the overall real wage index shrank by 0.8% in the second quarter of 2007, of which the index of skilled workers & semi-skilled workers rose by 0.7% whereas that of unskilled workers plunged by 9.9%.
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The Secretary for Transport and Public Works, Mr Lau Si Io, said the well-developed transportation network of Kansai, Japan, especially the network of connecting the public transportation with other sorts of transports, was an example for Macao. The policy secretary told the media at the Osaka's Kansai International Airport after he completed a fact-finding trip in the Japanese city. "We have visited four metro lines and three different metro systems during the stay. We have also studied the train designs, allocation of stations, as well as the network of connecting of metro lines with varies means of transport," said Mr. Lau. He added that Osaka's well-planned transportation network is a good reference, and his team will study the feasibility of applying the system in Macao. "We plan to organize more fact-finding trips to Europe, Singapore and Tokyo, Japan to study their metro systems," said the policy secretary. Mr Lau led a delegation to Osaka last week to celebrate Air Macao's first regular charter flight to the city.
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The Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao S.A.R. Government will organize an Academic Research Lecture in the Cultural Affairs Bureau Auditorium (Edifício do Instituto Cultural, Tap Seac Square, Macao) on August 1 (Wednesday) at 6:30pm. Dr. Nihal Perera, Associate Professor of Urban Planning at Ball State University will give a lecture on “Portuguese India: The Indian Ocean Space, Urban Systems, and Colombo”.
The European imprint is the most prominent in a large majority of cities across the world. In Asia, this began with the Portuguese incursion into the Indian Ocean in the late fifteenth century. Hence a knowledge of Portuguese urban systems in Asia is very significant for the understanding of Asian urbanization. This presentation will map out the urban systems and spaces created by the Portuguese in the Indian Ocean, with a specific focus on Colombo, looking at. The spatial revolution:
Going in opposite directions to get to the same place in the late fifteenth century, the Portuguese and the Spaniards caused a spatial revolution for Europe. This initiated spatial practices based on the idea that the world is a globe. At the same time, this three-dimensional space was redefined through devices such as the Pope's line. The Indian Ocean Space:
The Portuguese also created a sea-space defined by its outposts and the path of the Carreira da India. This sea-space –the body of which is the ocean—was a political body which was different to land-based kingdoms, empires, and port cities ("city states") that existed in Asia. Although it was not created by design, but by negotiated outcome, the Portuguese Indian Ocean Space very much reflected their imperial/ monopolistic intentions. Dr. Nihal Perera is Associate Professor of Urban Planning and Ex Director of Asian Studies at Ball State University. This year he is Fulbright Scholar at Hong Kong Baptist University. He has studied at University of Sri Lanka, University College, London, MIT, and has a PhD from State University of New York. His publications include, Society and Space: Colonialism, Nationalism, and Postcolonial Identity in Sri Lanka (Westview Press, 1998); Feminizing the City: Gender and Space in Colonial Colombo (2002); Contesting Visions: Hybridity, Liminality, and Authorship of the Chandigarh Plan (2004); Importing Problems: The Impact of a Housing Ordinance on Colombo (2005). He is also the director of CapAsia, a unique field-study semester in south Asia. He is currently working on a book Asian urbanization. The lecture will be given in English with Cantonese and Portuguese simultaneous interpretation. Entrance is free. For further details, please contact Ms. Esther Chu at 5986544, or visit the Cultural Affairs Bureau’s website: www.icm.gov.mo.
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To celebrate the 10th Anniversary of Macao Youth Symphony Orchestra Association, Macao Post announced that a Temporary Post Counter will be set up at Cultural Centre, at 16H00 to 20H00 on 4th August 2007 providing the commemorative cancellation service for the “10th Anniversary of Macao Youth Symphony Orchestra Association”. A commemorative envelope will be distributed to public, and various philatelic products will also be available for sale during the above activity. Welcome to visit and collect Macao Stamps.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service showed that in the second quarter of 2007, among the 15 types of construction materials surveyed, the price index of steel has risen notably from the last four quarters and registered the largest increase of 15.4% over the first quarter of 2007; followed by the indices of electric wires and aluminium, up by 11.9% and 5.4% respectively. Meanwhile, the indices of sand, lime, timber, ceramic products, paint, pipes, sanitary articles and cement rose between 0.3% and 1.6%. On the other hand, the price indices of concrete, glass and aggregates fell by 0.2%, 0.3% and 2.1% respectively. The index of concrete has recorded consecutive quarter-to-quarter decreases since the third quarter of 2006, down by 1.5%, 0.8%, 1.0% and 0.2% respectively. Meanwhile, the price index of red bricks remained unchanged. In the second quarter of 2007, the price indices of the construction materials surveyed, except concrete, moved up compared with the same quarter of 2006, of which the index of electric wires surged by 31.3% and the indices of steel and aggregates increased by 19.4% and 15.1% respectively.
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■ Air Macau starts its regular service to Kansai (Osaka) from 26 July 2007 With effect from 26th July 2007, Air Macau operates its regular service between Macau and Osaka. To coincide with the start of the operation, the delegation of Macau transport and tourism led by Eng. Lau Si Io, Secretary for Transport and public works including Eng. Joao Manuel Costa Antunes, Director of Macau Government Tourist Office have arrived in Japan. The direct flight operation between Macau and Japan is what both Japanese travel trade and tourists have long waited. This operation will sure give Macau an optional advantage for easier access for Osaka and Kansai market. Air Macau operates two flights a week on Thursday and Sunday. ■ Macau Destination Seminar held at the New Otani Osaka on 27 July 2007 MGTO will hold a destination seminar for travel trade and media in Kansai area on 27 July, 2007 at the New Otani Osaka for the purpose of supporting the regular service started by Air Macau and of leading Macau as the best-selling destination in western Japan. At the seminar, MGTO’s marketing strategy, the positioning of Macau in the Japanese market, the latest tourism updates on Macau such as World Heritage Sites and new infrastructures development will be provided. Also, networking opportunities will be arranged for the trade representatives of Macau with the Japanese travel agents. Over 240 tourism professionals have applied to participated in the seminar, and it shows the high interest of the travel trade for the destination. ■ Celebration dinner reception hosted by MGTO Followed by the destination seminar, MGTO will hold the celebration dinner reception with the presence of Eng. Lau Si Io, Secretary for Transport and Public Works of Macau SAR government, Mr. Luo Tian Guang, Consul-General of the People's Republic of China in Osaka and Mr. Simon W.H. Chan, President of Macau Civil Aviation Authority. Government officials, business community members, media representatives and travel trade professionals will be the guests from the Japan side. Mr. Harumi Umeda, President of the Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA) and Mr. Tadakuni Hirano, Executive Vice-president of Kansai Airport Company will make a speech to celebrate the further vitaliation of the traffic between Macau and Osaka. More than 300 attendances are expected for the dinner. During the dinner, Portuguese guitar will be performed to highlight the unique culture in Macau with the destination image slide show. ■ Newspaper Advertisement and Train AD gallery In order to let consumers know of Air Macau’s direct flight inauguration between Macau and Kansai on 26 July, 2007 as well as to promote Macau as the heritage destination, MGTO posted advertisements on major newspapers in Kansai area on the day of the inauguration of Air Macau. Besides, to widely promote among general consumers Macau as a destination for holidays, train AD galleries will be operated in Osaka area. Decorated trains with full of Macau posters inside will run on Hankyu line and Midosuji subway line from July 30 to August 1 and August 5 to 18 respectively. Also, another two-week operation on JR West line is planned in September in Osaka. The charms of Macau and messages as the heritage destination with the notice of the flight inauguration will be exposed to thousands of passengers every day.
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Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) was granted one of this year’s Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) “best-of-show” awards: the Grand Award for Heritage. PATA’s Grand Award for Heritage was given to MGTO for its “2006 Macau World Heritage Year” campaign “that positioned Macau as a destination offering travelers much more than entertainment and gaming”, according to the organization’s winners announcement statement. “The campaign successfully boosted the economic value of the city’s rich heritage by positioning and promoting its ‘historic centre’ as a must-see attraction”, PATA justified. MGTO’s director, João Manuel Costa Antunes, said that the award is a great honor and incentive to all MGTO’s efforts in attempting to bring more awareness to the city’s unique heritage. "The Macau Government Tourist Office is honored to receive this prestigious PATA Grand Award for Heritage for our ‘2006 Macau World Heritage Year’ campaign. The award signifies a strong recognition of MGTO’s determination and continuous effort in promoting our unique ‘Historic Centre of Macau’”, Costa Antunes said. “Macau’s living cultures and heritages will always remain as our core tourism assets, alongside other modern entertainment, leisure and business ingredients, and we look forward to sharing this unique experience with all our visitors," he added. Following the successful inscription of “The Historic Centre of Macau” on the UNESCO World Heritage List in July 2005, MGTO launched the “2006 Macau World Heritage Year” campaign. Throughout the year, by means of a variety of activities organized both locally and in visitor source markets, MGTO promoted the legacy of its more than 400 years of Chinese and Portuguese cultural exchanges. The winners of this leading travel awards program were announced Wednesday (July 25) in Bangkok. PATA attributed a total of four Grand Awards in different categories and 24 Gold Awards. The winners will be honoured at a special luncheon during the PATA Travel Mart 2007 in Bali on September 28. For more information on PATA Gold Awards please check: http://www.pata.org/patasite/index.php?id=20 This is the second time that MGTO receives the PATA Grand Award, after having been granted a Grand Award for Marketing with the 2001 “’Macau Welcomes You’ Passport Campaign”.
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Tickets for the 21st Macao International Music Festival (MIMF) will be available starting at 10am on 29 July, 2007. Presented by the Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao SAR Government, the Festival takes place from the 5th to the 31st of October, 2007. Seventeen musical acts performing new, traditional and classical works as well as pop and electronica grace the programme of a festival season that is one of the most eclectic in the history of the MIMF. 24 days of concerts feature internationally renowned artists and groups from countries as distant as Argentina and Finland. Highlights this year include the opera Rigoletto by Giuseppe Verdi and musical evenings with Portuguese concert pianist Maria João Pires and the Russian National Orchestra led by famous conductor Alexander Vedernikov. Likewise, the Vienna Boys Choir and the Brazil’s Grupo Cultural AfroReggae promise to attract multitudes of listeners to the stages of Macao. Beginning at 10am on 29 July, tickets for the MIMF go on sale via the Kong Seng Ticketing Network. Eager concertgoers are advised to get to the ticket outlets early to claim a queuing voucher. These vouchers will be distributed starting at 9am on 29 July and are limited to one per person. Holders of the vouchers may approach the ticket counters when their number is called. Anyone arriving after their turn has elapsed must wait for at least five voucher numbers to pass before being served. On the first day of ticket sales, purchases for The Macao Orchestra Invites Maria João Pires, Vienna Boys Choir and The Macao Chinese Orchestra Invites Jenny Yen are limited to 4 tickets per person. For the other concerts, purchases are limited on the first day of sales to 10 per performance per person.
Tickets may also be reserved by telephone or online beginning at 4pm on 29 July, 2007. Admission to the Prague Chamber Choir concert is free but requires a ticket which can be obtained through the Kong Seng Ticketing Network beginning at 10am on 29 July. These tickets are limited to 2 per person. Prices of admission this MIMF season continue to be quite affordable, ranging from MOP 60 to 400, and an extensive array of discounts are available. A discount of 40% will be given to holders of Student Cards (full-time students only; seating is limited to certain areas), holders of Macao Senior Citizen Cards and those who purchase tickets to 4 or more different performances or 10 or more tickets for the same show (with the exception of concerts held in churches). A discount of 20% is offered to holders of Youth Cards, Teacher Cards, MET (Macao Entertainment and Tourism) Cards or BNU, Weng Hang Bank, Seng Heng Bank or Luso International Banking LTD credit cards. For the locations of MIMF ticket outlets, call +853 2855 5555 or visit www.macauticket.net. Further information about the MIMF can be obtained by calling +853 399 6699 or visiting the Festival's official website at www.icm.gov.mo/fimm. The 21st Macao International Music Festival has the kind support of the Macao Government Tourist Office.
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