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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that visitor arrivals increased by 11.5% year-on-year to 2,376,840 as the Lunar New Year fall in February this year; same-day visitors (1,263,616) accounted for 53.2% of the total. In February 2013, visitors from Mainland China (1,508,599) increased by 17.4% year-on-year, with 719,055 coming from Guangdong Province, 58,427 from Zhejiang Province and 50,539 from Shanghai; Mainland visitors travelling under the Individual Visit Scheme (IVS) totalled 754,692. Moreover, visitors from Hong Kong (602,137) increased by 15.8%, while those from Taiwan, China (81,096) and the Republic of Korea (39,380) decreased by 2.7% and 13.3% respectively. Long-haul visitors from the US (12,105), Australia (6,571), and Canada (5,236) decreased by 6.6%, 21.4% and 4.6% respectively year-on-year, but those from the UK (4,348) and the Russian Federation (2,044) increased by 3.3% and 9.8% respectively. The average length of stay of visitors held stable from a year earlier, at 0.9 day in February 2013. Overnight and same-day visitors had an average stay of 1.8 days and 0.2 day respectively. In the first two months of 2013, visitor arrivals totalled 4,689,161, up by 2.1% year-on-year and same-day visitors accounted for 52.4% of the total. Mainland visitors (2,982,384) increased by 7.3% year-on-year, with 1,370,758 travelling under IVS; however, visitors from Hong Kong (1,111,963) and Taiwan, China (157,937) decreased by 4.0% and 6.5% respectively.
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Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) Director Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes met today (21) at the Russian capital the chairman of Moscow City Government Committee on Tourism and Hotel Industry, Sergei Shpilko. The Moscow Tourism chairman highlighted the relevance of Russia-China tourism relations and said he is looking forward to see this close cooperation also being extended to Macau. During the meeting, Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes and Sergei Shpilko, briefed each other on the tourism industry development situation of their respective destinations, and discussed about possibilities to enhance tourism cooperation relations. Sergei Shpilko remarked that Russia attaches great relevance to its tourism cooperation relations with China. He noted that 2012 was "The Year of Russian Tourism in China" and 2013 is "The Year of Chinese Tourism in Russia", with Russia giving great relevance to the boost of China and Russia tourism cooperation, and hopes that this good tourism cooperation can also be extended to Macau. The also chairman of the Russian Union of Tourism Industry - entity which fosters development of international cooperation for the Russian tourism industry - Sergei Shpilko suggested to MGTO to study the possibility of organizing a mega familiarization trip of Russian travel operators to Macau, in order to provide a platform for travel trade of both sides to conduct business contacts directly and discuss cooperation opportunities. Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes talked about the promotional plans for the Russian market following the opening of a representative office in the country, pointing out that Moscow city will be the first marketing target for MGTO to attract Russian visitors to Macau, with the next step expected to be the Eastern part of Russia, where potential travelers are more keen to travel to Asian destinations. MGTO director mentioned also that she expects to attract Russian visitors to visit not only Macau, but also to see the city as part of a leisure and business multi-destination itinerary that also includes Guangdong and Hong Kong. The mutual visa free policy is in force between Macau and Russia since October 2012. MGTO has opened a representative office in Moscow this year to tap into the potential of the Russian tourism market and to diversify visitor source market. MGTO organized a dinner yesterday (20) to foster networking and exchange between the Russian and Macau travel trade at one of the historical hotels located in Moscow's Red Square area. Taking advantage of the peak season for tourism industry trade shows at the Russian capital, MGTO organized a number of events to promote Macau as a leisure and business tourism destination for Russian travellers.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the impact of the Lunar New Year pushed up the Composite CPI (121.46) for February 2013 to increase by 6.16% year-on-year, attributable to dear prices of fresh food and produce, higher charges for eating out and outbound package tours. In comparison with February 2012, notable increase was observed in the price index of Recreation & Culture (+11.72%); Housing & Fuels (+8.88%); and Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages (+7.42%) on account of rising charges for eating out and outbound package tours, as well as general increase in prices of fresh food and produce during the holidays. On the contrary, price index of Education and Communication decreased by 3.14% and 1.34% respectively. The CPI-A (121.26) and CPI-B (121.96) increased by 6.69% and 6.08% respectively year-on-year. The average Composite CPI for the first two months of 2013 increased by 5.60% year-on-year; prices of fresh food and produce, and eating out contributed to an increase of 2.4 percentage points in the Composite CPI. The CPI-A and CPI-B rose by 6.19% and 5.50% respectively. The Composite CPI for February 2013 soared by 1.04% month-to-month, of which the price index of Recreation & Culture and Transport increased by 7.55% and 2.13% respectively. However, price index of Clothing & Footwear decreased by 3.97% upon seasonal sale of Winter clothing; receded prices of Liquefied Petroleum Gas tapered off the increase in Housing & Fuels. The CPI-A and the CPI-B increased by 1.11% and 1.04% respectively month-to-month. For the 12 months ended February 2013, the average Composite CPI increased by 5.99% from the preceding period, of which the price index of Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco (+26.22%); and Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages (+8.07%) rose significantly, while that of Communication decreased by 3.33%. The average CPI-A and CPI-B increased by 6.40% and 6.12% respectively. The 2008/2009-based Composite CPI reflects the impact of price changes on the general population. The CPI-A relates to about 50% of the households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP6,000 to MOP18,999. The CPI-B relates to about 30% of the households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP19,000 to MOP34,999.
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A carnival will be held by Consumer Council on 23rd March (Saturday) from 3PM to 5PM at Dr. Carlos D Assumpção Park in celebration of 15th anniversary of Consumer Arbitration Centre. To celebrate the 15th anniversary of the establishment of 'Consumer Arbitration Centre, Consumer Council organizes several carnivals in different local communities on Saturdays in March. Three carnivals have already been held at Vasco da Gama Garden, Largo de Camões in Taipa, and at the leisure areas on Rua Quatro do Bairro Iao Hon in the past three weeks. Participants learnt about consumer rights and services of the Arbitration Centre through various on-site games. Consumer Council will hold the last carnival in March on 23rd March at Dr. Carlos D Assumpção Park. On-site quiz games, booth games and information about the Arbitration Centre will be exhibited during the event. Consumer Council indicates that different promotional activities will be held in the future to promote the fair, free, and fast services provided by the Arbitration Centre for consumer disputes that are more complicated and involves claims which do not exceed MOP50,000. For inquiry, please call 8988-9315.
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The Macao SAR delegation, led by the Secretary for Administration and Justice Florinda Chan, attended the hearing of the UN Human Rights Committee at Geneva in Switzerland to present an in-depth interpretation of the MSAR existing laws, including the Basic Law and various single-line laws, the implementation and protection of human rights covered by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, whilst introducing the initiatives of enhanced measures for protecting and safeguarding the population's rights and interests since the establishment of the MSAR Government. The delegation continued their second round of the UN Human Rights Committee hearing in Geneva yesterday (19th) (local time) to respond to the Members' questions relevant to the status of the MSAR's implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. During the two-day meetings, members asked questions in several aspects on the implementation of the Convention, most of them concerning the fundamental rights such as employment, freedom of movement, freedom of information, protection of children and women, the legal procedural rights, and so forth. In her closing remarks, Secretary Chan thanked the Human Rights Committee for the open, frank and constructive dialogue during the two-day hearing; agreeing that the MSAR Government recognized the importance of the reporting mechanism and took into account the Human Rights Committee recommendations. The Chairman of Committee, Nigel Rodley, said in his concluding remarks that the report submitted by the SAR Government presents detailed information and the team that was present at the session was professional, which enabled the Committee to understand better the situation in Macao. He commended on the seriousness and the positiveness of the delegation's response to contribute an excellent dialogue between the two parties. He referred to the Committee's concerns on the MSAR's political system development, its immigration policy and functions of the Ombudsman. According to Article 40 of the Macao Basic Law concerning the "International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights", the "International Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights" and the International Labour Convention as applied to Macao shall remain in force through the implementation of relevant MSAR laws. The MSAR Government continues to review the implementation of the Convention to achieve further effective implementation in the Region. The MSAR Government taking the recommendations and opinions from the United Nations Human Rights Committee will continue to take necessary measures to protect the human rights for the Macao residents and to implement the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in the Region.
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Collecting aviation safety information from different channels, hence identifying safety threats and giving safety recommendations or warnings is one of the effective ways to prevent an accident or an incident, which is also an objective that the Civil Aviation Authority of Macao SAR (AACM) aims to achieve in enhancing aviation safety. Since some years ago, AACM started to plan for a voluntary reporting system for safety information and with endeavours, has finally devised the Macao Confidential Aviation Reporting System (MACCARES). The Authority held the first introductory session to the industry today (20 March 2013) to promote the objectives and the operational procedures of the system, as well as urge the operators to further promote the system internally within their organizations and encourage staff to report safety concerns to the Authority. Presently, apart from the reporting system for accident and serious incident, the operators report occurrences other than accident and serious incident to AACM through the Mandatory Occurrence Reporting System. The MACCARES, which will soon be launched, is a reporting system built on the voluntary, confidential and non-punitive principle. Any person who notices an occurrence or an act of non-compliance relating to aviation safety can complete the reporting form with the necessary information and then send it by post or through email to the Authority. Due to the fact that the MACCARES should be operated with the legal support of Law no. 2/2013 – "Civil Aviation Accident and Incident Investigation and Aviation Safety Information Protection Law", the system will become operative on the same date as the effective date of the law on 21 May 2013. Safety information collected by AACM through MACCARES will be analyzed. Statistical reports with de-identified data will be generated, published and shared with the industry so that each entity can learn from experience and make improvement. In the case if a report shows a situation that poses immediate threat to aviation safety, AACM will address a safety alert to the concerned operator at the earliest time. The Authority points out that each report is handled by one staff member in the accident prevention and investigation group in AACM. When complete information is obtained, the staff member will de-identify the information and record the remaining information in the MACCARES database. To conform with the confidential principle, the email that contains the report will be deleted and the original report that is sent to AACM by post will be returned to the reporter through registered mail. The Authority emphasized that the system works on the confidential and non-punitive principle, in order to encourage the active participation from the operators. AACM will not penalize the operators or any person by using the information collected from this reporting system. To enhance the promotion of the system to the industry in order that the latter can better understand the objectives and the operational procedures for their future participation, AACM has produced promotional pamphlets (with the reporting form incorporated) and posters in Chinese, Portuguese and English and will launch an online special session for the system in their website. The reporting form will be distributed to the operators and can be picked up in Macau International Airport whereas the electronic copy can be downloaded from the AACM website. In addition, for the purpose of encouraging different levels of industry personnel to report any safety concern to AACM so that the Authority can collect as much safety information as possible, the Authority will organize a number of introductory sessions each aiming at a different category of staff. The first introductory session that took place today was done at 10:00 in AACM office, being part of the agenda of the regular Safety Management System Meeting held between AACM and the industry. Attendees from the industry were personnel responsible for safety management in Air Macau Company Ltd., East Asia Airlines Ltd., JetAsia Ltd., Macau Jet International Co. Ltd., the Administration of Airports Ltd. and Menzies Macau Airport Services Ltd. In addition to introducing MACCARES and requesting the operators to help promote the system internally, AACM also made a detailed introduction of the Law no. 2/2013 – "Civil Aviation Accident and Incident Investigation and Aviation Safety Information Protection Law". The MACCARES was developed on the basis of the need to comply with the requirements of Annex 13 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation. Besides, the audit result of ICAO's Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme which Macao participated in 2009 indicated a finding that Macao should be equipped with a voluntary incident reporting system in the area of accident investigation. AACM then established an internal accident prevention and investigation ad hoc working group to study into the legislation on accident investigation and the formulation of MACCARES, the process during which the regulations and the practice in other countries such as mainland China, Canada, United States of America, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong and so on were taken into reference.
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Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) announced today in a special promotional event in Moscow the opening of its representative office in Russia, taking advantage of the peak period of travel shows in the country, where Macau is also joining hands with Hong Kong to promote the two cities as one destination, to develop the great potential of the Russian tourism market. MGTO director Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes is at the Russian capital to officiate the opening of the new representative office at a launching lunch held today at Lotte Hotel Moscow, to Russian travel trade and media. "We are very excited to open a representative office here in Moscow following a few years conducting seasonal promotions to test the market. Russia is one of the most sought-after markets in the world in terms of tourism potential and for Macau the Russian market is the fastest growing emerging market," Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes said at the function. The new MGTO representative office in Moscow was announced today taking advantage of the high season of tourism trade fairs taking place at the Russian capital. Moscow hosted the Luxury Travel Mart, held March 14, followed by Intourmarket International Travel Fair (ITM), organized between March 16 and 19, and the Moscow International Travel and Tourism Exhibition (MITT), running March 20 to 23, with MGTO participating in all three events to promote Macau. MGTO director, along with a group of Macau travel trade, representing two local travel agencies and two hotels, is participating at MITT, which is considered the main international travel show held annually in Russia. Macau booth at MITT invites trade visitors and consumers to Experience Macau, network and learn more about the city's tourism and entertainment infrastructures, heritage and culture, festivals and events. On the day of MITT opening, tomorrow (20), MGTO is going to host a dinner for Russian travel agencies and other travel trade directors and managers to meet and exchange with the Macau delegation. On March 21, MGTO is also organizing a joint event with Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) to promote the two neighbor cities as one destination for Russian travelers. MGTO director, along with HKTB deputy-executive director Daisy Lui will host a cocktail-presentation of the two destinations for Russian media and travel trade. Following several years organizing regular promotions in Russia, MGTO opened a representative office in the country, which started operations in January this year. With a mutual visa free policy in force between Macau and Russia since October 2012, along with continuing increase of visitors from the country to Macau, as well as to Hong Kong, MGTO decided to open a representative office in Russia looking forward to diversify visitor source market to the city. Russia is one of the most sought-after markets in the world in terms of its tourism potential and is the fastest growing emerging market for Macau. Visitor arrivals from Russia have been increasing annually since 2004. Last year Macau welcomed 26,844 Russian visitors, marking a year-on-year growth of 62.6 per cent.
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Consumer Council released its latest specific price survey on biscuits. Survey result showed that the highest price difference recorded for the same biscuit brand sold at different retail spots was 33.33 percent. Consumer Council collected 8 brands of biscuits from 20 local retail outlets on 14th March. A general price difference of 10 to 20 percent was recorded for the same brand of biscuit sold at various outlets. 'Garden Cream Wafers/200g', which was sold at $7.2 to $9.6, recorded the highest price difference of 33.33 percent. In comparison with January's data, prices of the surveyed brands remained stable and 3 surveyed brands recorded no change in price. Apart from certain brands which were sold at special prices last time and recorded price adjustments in the current survey, other brands recorded price increases or decreases of about 5 percent, only 'Pacific Soda Cracker/200g' observed an obvious price increase of 17.6 percent at one retail outlet. The specific price survey on biscuits is now available on Consumer Council's website (www.consumer.gov.mo) and in the Council's 'Supermarket Price Information Platform' iPhone and Android apps. For inquiry, please call 8988 9315.
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The Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macau SAR Government presents the 24th Macao Arts Festival (MAF) with the aim of creating a platform for cultural exchange. This year, the Festival will open on 3 May and, for the period of one month, will feature thirty-four acts, half of which are local productions. This year's Festival includes a varied array of performances from Mainland China, Portugal, the United Kingdom, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Israel, Taiwan, Vietnam and Singapore, ranging from contemporary dance to traditional Beijing opera, from multimedia performances to shadow puppetry, from audiovisual architectural mappings to exhibitions of traditional Chinese calligraphy and painting. Shows for all tastes take to the stage, not only at the city's performing arts venues but also at many of Macao's world heritage sites. The MAF begins and ends with two contemporary dance works. Drought and Rain, by renowned French-Vietnamese director, choreographer and performance artist Ea Sola, lifts the curtain on this year's edition. This ballet continues Sola's study of the memories of war, expressing deep humanistic concerns and developing the notions of "hardship" and "forgiveness". FAR, an anatomy-defying work by multi-award winning British choreographer Wayne McGregor, is sure to bring the Festival to a scintillating close. At the core of the Festival programme are other treats. A team of outstanding choreographers from across Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao have collaborated to deliver Love Letters, a dance performance revealing the splendid results of a fruitful inter-regional co-operation. Han Yuniang, a new work presented by the China National Beijing Opera Theatre, stars Dong Yuanyuan, artistic successor of famed performer Mei Lanfang. Local artists, who studied under Spain's Telenoika Audiovisual Open Creative Community, have created two audiovisual shows in Mapping: Made in Macao I and II, designed specifically for the façades of the Mandarin's House and Tap Seac Square. French choreographer and dance revolutionary Xavier Le Roy blends science with imagination to explore the infinite possibilities of the human body in Self-Unfinished. Art exhibitions are also featured in the MAF. Vanishing Techniques – Photography of Jean Baudrillard showcases the French thinker's unique photographic theory and practice, which allowed him to demonstrate with a camera his varied ways of looking at and perceiving the world. The Macao Museum hosts Fantasy World – Chinoiserie, a display of European-made artefacts dating to the 17th and 18th centuries, inspired by an admiration for the Chinese art and philosophy being imported from the East during the Age of Enlightenment. For more information please consult the MAF website at www.icm.gov.mo/fam or booklet. Tickets for the 24th Macao Arts Festival will be available after 10am on 24 March 2013 at all Macao Kong Seng Ticketing Network outlets. Telephone and online bookings will be available from 12pm on the same day. This year, the Festival offers early bird discounts of up to 40%, between 24 March and 7 April, when buying tickets for at least 4 different performances or when buying 10 or more tickets for the same performance. After 8 April, purchasers meeting the same conditions will still receive a 30% discount. A 20% discount is also available on tickets to any show upon presentation of a Bank of China (Macau), Banco Weng Hang (Macau), LTD., Tai Fung Bank, ICBC (Macau), BCM Bank, Luso International Banking LTD. or BNU Credit Card or a Bank of China Tri-Currency Debit Card. The Festival has also created, in collaboration with Pacific Coffee Company, the "Arts and Coffee" special offer. With every purchase of one ticket each for the Festival's opening and closing shows, Drought and Rain and FAR, purchasers will receive a voucher for one free "tall" coffee drink at any Macao branch of Pacific Coffee Company. By presenting their 2013 MAF tickets at any Pacific Coffee Company in Macao, festival goers may also upgrade one drink. The 24th MAF press conference takes place on March 19, Tuesday, at 3pm, at the Tourism Activities Centre, with the presence of the President of the Cultural Affairs Bureau, Ung Vai Meng; the Deputy Director of the Macao Government Tourist Office, one of the Festival's supporters, Tse Heng Sai; the Chief Executive Officer of TDM, Teledifusão de Macau, Leong Kam Chun; the representative of Air Macau, Mavis Chan, the Vice-President of the Cultural Affairs Bureau, Leong Hio Ming; the Chief of the Cultural Events Department, Ieong Chi Kin; and representatives of participating groups in this year's Festival. For more information on the 24th MAF, please call 8399 6699 during office hours.Ticketing hotlines: (853) 2855 5555 in Macao; (852) 2380 5083 in Hong Kong; (86) 139 2691 1111 in Mainland China.Online Reservations: www.macauticket.com
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Delegation of the MSAR Government in Geneva of Switzerland yesterday (18th of local time) attended the United Nations Human Rights Committee Session on the implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). In the meeting, Ambassador Liu Zhenmin, Permanent Representative of the People's Republic of China to the United Nations Office at Geneva and Other International Organizations in Switzerland, gave his introductory speech that, in accordance with relevant provisions under the Macao Basic Law, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights with its applicable provisions to the MSAR continue to be in force after 20 December 1999, such implementation being made through the local laws enactment.
During the meeting, Head of delegation of the MSAR, Secretary for Administration and Justice – Florinda Chan, gave an overview of the major initiatives and progress made by the MSAR Government in relation to the implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. She said that the MSAR Government is committed to the effective implementation of the relevant provisions of the Covenant. The principle of "One Country, Two Systems" has contributed to the enlargement of the scope of human rights in the MSAR in accordance with the Basic Law with the adoption of relevant conventions on the field of the human rights. Since the return of Macao to the People's Republic of China, social development has been on a gradual and steady progress under the joint effort of the Macao population. The Government policies stress on increasing significant resources to improve the welfare of the population, such as upgrading the Social Security Fund and Access to Education, including implementing a basic 15 years free education system and financial subsidies to local students, whilst improving medical cares and benefits for the seniors, children, students, disable, and vulnerable groups. New legislation was enacted to comply with the obligations set forth in the ICCPR, and other international instruments applicable to the MSAR on human rights and other rights have been reinforced, such as in the field of data protection, against drugs and human trafficking, labour relations, persons with disabilities, refugees, access to law and legal aid, protection of women and children. These measures have been adopted to provide adequate assistance to vulnerable persons, as well as to promote dialogue and cooperation with local non-governmental organizations in tackling relevant social issues. In respect of the monitoring and supervisory mechanisms on human rights, the judiciary bodies observe and consider whether the MSAR legal order is in conformity with international conventional law applicable to the Region. Other institutional body within the context is the Ombudsman with its main function to protect the rights, freedoms, safeguards and the legitimate interests of the individuals and to ensure the legality in the exercise of public authority, justice, and efficiency in the public administration. The MSAR Government also emphasizes on the contributions of the non-governmental organizations to strive for a harmonious livelihood, including setting up hotlines, studying the social problems and their counter-measures, promoting public-awareness of the legal system, as well as playing an intermediary role between the Government and the population. The MSAR Government maintains regular dialogues with the non-governmental organizations, and actively encourages the participation of residents in public affairs and political life, through public consultations before major policies decision-making and law drafting.
In 2012, the MSAR Government completed and amended the Methodology for the Constitution of the Legislative Assembly, the Methodology for the Selection of the Chief Executive, and their relevant local electoral laws. Such processes were consistent with the Basic Law and the reality of the MSAR where a gradual and smooth democratisation process for its political system was being undertaken. It was worth emphasizing that this was a process open to the community which received full participation of the MSAR residents and the local associations through public consultations.
Subsequently, the Deputy Head of the MSAR delegation cum Director of the Law Reform and International Law Bureau - Chu Lam Lam, briefed the MSAR's legal reform and development on human rights in response to the key questions identified by the Committee, including the application of international treaties in the Region, the freedom of speech and press, the labour relations, the fight against terrorism and measures to combat the crimes of trafficking in persons. The Chairman and members of the Committee commended on the MSAR's first report being comprehensive, informative, with detailed clarifications to their questions. It helped the Committee gain a deeper understanding of the situation of the MSAR. The Meeting will be held for two consecutive days. Other members of the MSAR delegation also include the Office of the Secretary for Administration and Justice, the Office of the Secretary for Security, the Government Information Office, the Macao Economic and Trade Office to the World Trade Organization, the Labour Affairs Bureau, the Public Security Police Force, and the Social Welfare Bureau.
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