Fortunately I have the text of the article, which I quote from... the key point is this:
China’s top official on Taiwan affairs has warned that Beijing will sever valuable transport and other ties with Taiwan’s outlying island county of Kinmen if it moves to develop an integrated resort.Getting gambling established on Kinmen is often mentioned as the end goal of the referendum on Matsu enabling casino gambling, since Matsu is unsuitable for a variety of reasons. The article observed:
Taiwan Affairs Office director Zhang Zhijun issued the extraordinary threat on Sunday as he toured Kinmen after talks with his Taiwanese counterpart, Mainland Affairs Council minister Andrew Hsia.
Kinmen business leaders cited Zhang as saying that Kinmen’s development “must follow the correct path” and warned the island against establishing a casino industry, “otherwise the small three links will most definitely be shut down”.
The “small three links” refer to direct transport, trade and postal connections between Taiwan-controlled Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties and nearby Chinese port cities.
However, since Sunday a number of DPP legislators have attacked Zhang’s comments as a slur on Taiwan’s autonomy, pointing out that China tolerates gaming facilities not only in its own territory of Macau, but also just across its borders with other countries.How do you think Beijing will behave when it has actual control of Taiwan?
Isn't it good that ECFA has enhanced Chinese goodwill and favorable attitude towards Taiwan?
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At least Chinese officials are direct about what they want. It is a good thing :)
ReplyDeleteManufacturing are moving out from China.
High school students from 60 some schools are now organizing to protest the impending changes in textbook and numbers are growing daily. KMT just dose not know how to stop shooting themselves in the foot.
Things are getting better day by day. This is great!!!
All the more reason for Kinmen to just go ahead and do it anyway. People who want to go to Kinmen from China will just get there via Taipei - what are the daft twats going to do, cancel all cross-strait flights to Taiwan just to stop a bit of blackjack?
ReplyDeleteSource?
ReplyDeleteI'm confounded by the polls; some show Tsai leading Chu/Wang by a whopping 20-30%; some show her leading Chu/Wang by only 3-5%. Someone's numbers are far, far off.
ReplyDelete,I'm confounded by the polls; some show Tsai leading Chu/Wang by a whopping 20-30%; some show her leading Chu/Wang by only 3-5%. Someone's numbers are far, far off.
ReplyDeleteIt's like that every election. I thouht Hu would win Taichung because of several polls showing it was close.
what are the daft twats going to do, cancel all cross-strait flights to Taiwan just to stop a bit of blackjack?
That's precisely why we should do that.
It just goes to show what Ma Ying-jou's emphasis on turning Taiwan into a tourism economy might do. All Beijing has to do is to turn off the tap. Chinese tourism companies can easily book new locations in other countries with minimal impact, while all the regions in Taiwan that have converted to a tourism based economy reliant on an artificial demand, will suffer with few economic alternatives.
ReplyDeleteAnd there is a part of me that feels this scenario has always been the plan.
The point is that, however much the casino owners in Macau fear competition, they can't really prevent it. They might get the three links between Kinmen and China cancelled at least temporarily, but if the new casino owners in Kinmen really know what they are doing, then in the end this will be futile. The route around from Taipei will be trivial for anyone who really wants to try Kinmen as an alternative to Macau. There is no way the Chinese government is going to cancel flights between Taiwan and China merely on account of a few quid being spent in Kinmen instead of Macau. The butthurt of a few casino operators just isn't important.
ReplyDeleteAnd there is a part of me that feels this scenario has always been the plan.
ReplyDeleteYes, me too.
Michael
Macau's gambling revenue falls 37 percent in May
ReplyDeletehttp://in.reuters.com/article/2015/06/01/macau-gambling-revenue-idINENNF5L0SH20150601
"The butthurt of a few casino operators just isn't important."
ReplyDeleteThis is more about the CPC (CCP?) trying to prevent HK-style unrest in Macau.
I doubt the concerns of HKers over a Chinese invasion interest Beijing in the slightest. Numbers are falling in Macau because of Xi Jing-pin's purge, ostensibly on the corrupt but just as likely only on enemies who happen to be corrupt. The fact that Macau's youngsters have been training themselves for careers as croupiers and bell hops rather than studying technical subjects just points out how fragile this industry is and should serve as a warning to Taiwan. Rely on Chinese tourism and you'll be at their beck and call your whole life.
ReplyDelete