News

The International Council of Museums identifies that a museum is a non-profit making, permanent institution in the service of society and of its development, open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits the tangible and intangible heritage of humanity and its environment for purposes of education, study and enjoyment. In the internet era of the 21st century, human life has become more changeable and sophisticated. Hence, promoting the communication among people and the cultural exchange of different nationalities is an important goal for achieving peace and harmony in this century. As social and cultural organizations, museums should be serving the society for its development. We should be clear about our positioning in the society, active in innovation and serve as bridge for human relationship. Consequently, we shall be able to perform our function of achieving social harmony by uplifting the quality of the city, its citizens and culture. To celebrate the annual International Museum Day on 18th May, admission to all the museums in Macao will be free from 15th May (Sunday) to 18th May (Tuesday), respectively. Each museum will prepare a series of special features and promotional activities in May, including seminars, thematic exhibitions and workshops, etc. in order to let Macao citizens feel the unlimited power of the museums to the society. For details of free admission and special activities, please refer attachments or visit the portal of the Museums of Macao (http://www.museums.gov.mo). One of the most important celebrations this year is “The Museum Fair of Macao, Hong Kong and Guangdong Province 2010” at the Tap Seac Square from 2:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. on 9th May. Museums from the Guangdong Province and Hong Kong were invited to participate and attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony that will be held at 3:00 p.m. In addition to several exhibitions and booth games, there will be many types of comprehensive performances arranged for the visitors to quickly experience the characteristics of the museums from the Guangdong Province, Hong Kong and Macao simultaneously. There will be dynamic shows with great varieties; including music, dancing, and dramatic theatre for the whole afternoon. There will be also lucky draws with rich and attractive prizes. Macao Post will issue a commemorative envelope for free distribution to the public and provide commemorative cancellation service for stamp collectors at the Temporary Postal Counter from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. The organizers of the celebrations of International Museum Day 2010 are: Natural and Agrarian Museum, Grand Prix Museum, Fire Services Museum, Maritime Museum, Communications Museum of Macao, Museum of Taipa and Coloane History, Handover Gifts Museum of Macao, Lin Zexu Memorial Museum of Macao, Macao Science Center, Macao Tea Culture House, Dr. Sun Iat Sen’s Memorial House in Macau, Macao Museum, Macao Museum of Art, Wine Museum and the Taipa Houses-Museum.
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The Historical Archives of Macao will hold another of its popular conservation workshops on Saturday 15th of May from 14.00 to 17.00. This time the focus will be on making a protective box with support for a book. No previous experience is required but participants must be at least ten years old. Starting 10th of May, please visit the Historical Archives of Macao (open Mon-Fri, 09:30-18.30, Sat, 13.00-18.00) on Tap Seac Square to register and pay the workshop fee of MOP$20 (inclusive of materials and equipment for the workshop). Places are limited and will be distributed according to order of registration. For more information about individual workshops this year, please visit http://www.archives.gov.mo/cn/news/. For further details, please contact Ms. Esther Chu of the Macao Historical Archives of the Cultural Affairs Bureau at 85986537.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, said today the Government was very concerned with the Labour Day demonstrations and hoped that people would express their opinions and requests peacefully. Mr Chui expressed his sympathy to the injured and wished them a speech recovery. Forty-one people were injured, three requiring hospital admission. Mr Chui, who returned after attending the opening ceremony of World Expo 2010 in Shanghai and a visit to Jiangsu province, said the police had restrained themselves when they dealt with protesters. He said that the Government was very concerned with the demands and opinions aired by unemployed workers. Government officials had met their representatives, drafted regulations that ensured the employment of local workers, and introduced temporary measures and subsidies to help them, he said.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On and the Governor of Jiangsu province, Mr Luo Zhijun today agreed to hold promotional weeks in both places to boost co-operation. They made the decision when the Macao and Jiangsu leaders met in Nanjing. Mr Luo said that in recent years, Jiangsu had a profound development in tourism, service industry and technology education. He said Jiangsu and Macao could step up co-operation in the post global financial crises. Mr Chui said that during this visit, he noticed that Jiangsu had developed well and the two places could strengthen co-operation, especially in tourism and training in the service sector. Both parties agreed to have exchange visits at high-ranking official level, in addition to holding a “Macao Week” in Jiangsu and “Jiangsu Week” in Macao.
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Macao and Jiangsu leaders have agreed to strengthen co-operation on trade, culture and tourism to further boost their economies. The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, mutually agreed on this with the Secretary of Jiangsu Provincial CPC Committee, Mr Liang Baohua, when they met today after the Macao delegation arrived in Nanjing.
Mr Liang welcomed Mr Chui, who was in Jiangsu for the first time as Macao’s Chief Executive. Mr Liang said Macao and Jiangsu would step up bilateral co-operations on trade, culture and tourism. Mr Chui said Macao and Jiangsu have been co-operating for a long time, and future co-operation should be built up from that foundation. Moreover, Macao, being a service platform between China and the Portuguese-speaking countries, would actively promote contact between Jiangsu and the Portuguese-speaking countries and regions.
The delegation left for Yangzhou in the afternoon where they attended a welcome banquet hosted by Yangzhou leaders. Tomorrow Mr Chui is scheduled to meet with the Governor of Jiangsu Province, Mr Luo Zhijun, before returning to Macao in the afternoon.
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The Acting Chief Executive, Ms Florinda Chan, said tonight the Government was very concerned with the protests and conflicts that occurred during the day, resulting in 41 injuries. A statement issued tonight said Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On – who is leading a delegation on an official visit to Jiangsu -- had called Ms Chan and the Secretary for Security, Mr Cheong Kuoc Va, to get a better picture of the incidents. A number of organisations have organised marches on Labour Day to protest a number of issues and appealed for improvements on a number of labour-related issues. The statement said some protesters did not follow the route specified earlier by the police and clashed with the officers, resulting in injuries to 41 people -- three members of the public, two journalists, four protesters and 32 policemen, the statement said. The Government respected citizens’ basic right to gather in public, to march and to demonstrate peacefully, the statement said. It said the Government had expressed its sincere sympathy to the victims, three of whom were hospitalised. They were a member of the public, a protester and a policeman. In order to maintain public security, the police have took measures promptly to minimise the negative effect, such as requesting journalists to stay back about 100 metres. Some 350 policemen were deployed at the scene.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, today met with the Secretary of Nantong Municipal CPC Committee, Mr Luo Yi Min, to discuss bilateral co-operation in Nantong, Jiangsu. Before leaving for Nantong, Mr Chui and his delegation visited World Expo 2010 in Shanghai where he toured the Macao pavilion with the Hong Kong SAR Chief Executive, Mr Donald Tsang. The Macao delegation also visited the China pavilion and the Urban Best Practice Area—the “Tak Seng On” pawn shop. In the afternoon, the delegation left for Nantong to meet with the Jiangsu leaders. Mr Luo said at the meeting that Macao was in an important position in the nation’s economic development and Nantong would enhance co-operation with Macao in terms of economic, culture, education and tourism. Mr Chui told Mr Luo he believed bilateral co-operation would help to diversify Macao’s economy. The delegation attended a welcoming banquet in the evening. Tomorrow they continue on to Nanjing.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, is in Shanghai to attend this evening’s grand opening ceremony of World Expo 2010. Mr Chui and his delegation will visit the Macao pavilion, the China pavilion and the Urban Best Practice Area—the “Tak Seng On” pawn shop tomorrow, before leaving for Nantong, Jiangsu. Members of the delegation included the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr Tam Pak Yuen, the Chief of the Office-of-the Chief Executive, Mr Alexis Tam, the Secretary of Executive Council and consultant of the Office-of-the Chief Executive, Ms O Nan, the Director of the Government Information Bureau, Mr Victor Chan and the consultants of the Office-of the Chief Executive, Mr Fung Sio Weng and Kou Chin Hung. Before his departure Mr Chui told reporters that the Government respected and would abide by the decision made by the Court of Final, which reversed a government refusal of an application by a trade union to hold a rally in a public park on 1 May. Mr Chui said that there were many ways to express opinions peacefully, and that the Government welcomed suggestions and would monitor public opinion expressed via all channels.
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Students and staff of the Institute For Tourism Studies (IFT) have raised MOP23,800.00 for the Qinghai Yushu earthquake victims. Donation was transferred to the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macao S.A.R. on 29 April by Registrar, Mr. Antonio Chu and IFT Student Union representatives. The IFT delegation was received by Mr. Wu Xu Peng, Deputy Division Director of Department of Culture and Education. The relentless 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck the Tibetan region on 14 April. The death toll in Qinghai Yushu city has climbed over 2000 and hundred thousand others have lost their homes and loved ones. The high altitude and freezing weather has made rescue difficult. The compatriots in Macao have expressed their sympathy and deep condolence and IFT, in order to offer aid to the victims of this devastating quake, organised the “Water Conservation Fund Raising Activity” to combine the water conservation with charity. In recent years, Macao has been facing the threat of salinity. The continuous support from the upstream provinces in supplying us fresh water has largely relieved the threat, especially during the severest draught in the last hundred years. IFT would like to take this opportunity to arouse the students and staff awareness in treasuring our resources while raising fund for Qinghai Yushu earthquake relief, to reassert the concept that “every drop counts”. The activity is highly support by the Water Conservation Workgroup who sponsored 500 water saving taps to the activity. Fund raising points were set up at the Main campus, Taipa Campus and the 2 training units – Pousada de Mong-Há and Educational Restaurant and students, staff and guests of the training units who made donations, would receive a water saving tap as compliment. The students have experienced the patriotic sentiments of Macao people who are always ready to give a helping hand to our compatriots in the disaster area. Through the selfless donations of our community, it is believed that the promise by President, Hu Jintao to the students of Yushu city, “There will be new schools! There will be new homes!” will soon be fulfilled. Registrar and representatives of Student Union of IFT transferred the donation to Liaison OfficeIFT staff and student contribute to the fund with an open heart
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that the total number of licensed vehicles reached 189,757 at the end of March 2010, a year-on-year increase of 3%, of which 54% (102,626) were motorcycles and 39% (73,514) were light private cars. New registration of motor vehicles increased by 1% year-on-year to 3,947 in the first quarter of 2010, with motorcycles and light private cars accounting for 61% and 35% respectively. In the first quarter of 2010, number of traffic accidents rose by 3% year-on-year to 3,113 cases, resulting in 1,251 victims and 1 of them was killed. Traffic flow by land between Macao and Mainland China increased by 3% year-on-year to 894,020 vehicle trips in the first quarter of 2010, with vehicle traffic through the Border Gate taking up 82% of the total. Commercial flight movements at the Macao International Airport fell by 4% year-on-year to 8,956 in the first quarter of 2010. The major routes were Taiwan, China; Mainland China; Malaysia; and Thailand, accounting for 38%, 25%, 9% and 8% of the total commercial flights. Helicopter flights between Macao and Hong Kong increased slightly by 1% year-on-year to 3,562 and those between Macao and Mainland China went up by 4% to 790. Passenger transport by sea between Macao and Hong Kong totalled 28,178 ferry trips, similar to that of a year earlier, with the Outer Harbour sharing 75% of the total (21,079). Ferry trips between Macao and Mainland China totalled 6,429, up by 25% year-on-year, with the Inner Harbour (2,890) and the Outer Harbour (2,653) accounting for 45% and 41% of the total respectively. In the first quarter of 2010, seaborne container throughput totalled 20,084 TEU or 14,234 containers handled, down by 7% and 10% respectively year-on-year. Gross weight of seaborne containerized cargo fell by 11% to 40,405 tonnes, with 2,772 tonnes of transshipment goods. Gross weight of containerized cargo by land dropped notably by 39% to 9,846 tonnes, including 2,999 tonnes of transit goods. Outward air cargo grew significantly by 60% year-on-year to 7,592 tonnes in the first quarter of 2010. The main destination was Taiwan, China that accounted for 71% of the total. Concurrently, inward air cargo surged by 87% to 4,110 tonnes, with those from Taiwan, China taking a predominant share of 86%. However, transit air cargo dropped by 43% year-on-year to 1,629 tonnes. At the end of March 2010, number of mobile telephone users rose by 7% from a year earlier to 1,055,722 whereas fixed-line telephone users decreased by 2% to 170,567. As regards internet services, number of subscribers reached 150,069 and the cumulative duration of usage totalled 97.2 million hours in the first quarter of 2010, up by 17% and 29% respectively.
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