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Long before the negotiations about the future of Macau started, a cloud of precariousness hovered for a number of centuries over Portugal’s presence in a small peninsula, offset by fluctuations in Chinese power. It was probably out of sheer short-sightedness that Portugal did not legitimise its presence in Macau, believing that the friendly relations it enjoyed with China would remain in the long run despite its fragile presence in the territory. In more recent times, a notion of historical shared sovereignty1 and the vaguely worded Sino-Portuguese Joint Declaration of 1987 meant that Portugal and the PRC accepted the principle that both had jurisdictional rights in Macau.2 This scenario served to reinforce Portugal’s undetermined position in Macau. The Portuguese established themselves in Macau during the sixteenth century and remained there for four centuries through shared sovereignty.3 From the first Portuguese settlement until the signature of the Sino-Portuguese Joint Declaration in 1987, Portugal conformed to the rules imposed by China with a few exceptions. One occurred in 1783 when Portugal declared the right of sovereignty over Macau with both countries sharing equal sovereignty over the territory. Then in 1849, Governor Ferreira do Amaral succeeded imposing de facto Portuguese sovereignty over the territory, leaving China with limited powers. However, the 1862 Treaty of Friendship and Trade that appeared to shift the balance of power in Portugal’s favour faltered. It was never ratified. Macau legally was not considered Portuguese territory. Territorial legitimacy was based on a loose system of values, riding on interests of economic and political significance. In 1887 the two countries signed the Lisbon Protocol and the Treaty of Friendship and Trade, giving Portugal the same privileges and immunities that a number of other foreign countries enjoyed within China. This remained the status until 1949, the year that marked the termination of diplomatic relations with establishment of the PRC. The Portuguese right-wing regime refused to recognise the legitimacy of the PRC. This 1 The Ambiguity over the Future of Macau 8 Portugal, China and the Macau Negotiations situation was bypassed through the establishment of unofficial channels bridged by Macau Chinese acting as de facto intermediaries.4 It was not until 1976 that the Portuguese Constitution and the Estatuto Orgânico de Macau (Macau Organic Law) made decisive changes to Macau’s legal status, defining it as territory under Portuguese administration. At the same time, China regained some of its powers of sovereignty over Macau. During the transition period (1988–1999) the two countries shared again a degree of sovereignty over Macau.5 After the establishment of the PRC in 1949, Portugal and China were bound by mutual interests that both enjoyed in Macau. For the Portuguese, Macau had symbolic meaning, strategically aligned to myths of imperial prominence and cultural largesse. Portuguese colonialism was sustained on these grounds. The status quo in Macau subsisted to pay lip service to Portugal’s past world-leading role. On the other hand, rational China, keen to keep the status quo in Macau at that time, sought to undermine Portugal’s administration of the enclave to facilitate its subservience to the PRC’s will. Historically Macau served as a gateway of communication with the West; an important commercial hub serving as an outlet for Chinese goods and an invaluable source of foreign exchange.6 For example, during the Korean War (1950–1953) the PRC used Macau as a bridge to break the blockade imposed on it by the West.7 In fact, Macau was de jure administered by Portugal but de facto controlled by China,8 giving the impression that Portugal had nominal status vis-à-vis mainland China. Decolonisation of the African possessions in 1974 resulted in Portugal’s political system undergoing significant change. By 1975 the new Portuguese regime had withdrawn entirely from Africa and East Timor, which had a bearing on how Portugal viewed its role in Macau: complacent and disinterested. In fact Portugal feared further embarrassment by keeping Macau, in the context of the decolonisation of its possessions in Africa. Portugal’s nonchalant attitude annoyed the PRC as it intended to maintain the status quo in Macau—reasoning based on a number of considerations including the safeguarding of Hong Kong’s stability and keeping both territories as pathways open to trade and contact with the West.9 Finally in 1979 a new leftist regime in Portugal re-established diplomatic relations with the PRC after a prolonged stalemate, by signing a secret agreement in which Portugal...

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