Marcus P. Chu Politics of Mega-Events in China‘s Hong Kong and Macao Politics and Development of Contemporary China Series Editors Kevin G. Cai University of Waterloo Renison University College Waterloo, ON, Canada Pan Guang Shanghai Center for International Studies Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences Shanghai, China Daniel C. Lynch University of Southern California School of International Relations Los Angeles, CA, USA As China’s power grows, the search has begun in earnest for what ­superpower status will mean for the People’s Republic of China as a nation as well as the impact of its new-found influence on the Asia-Pacific region and the global international order at large. By providing a venue for exciting­ and ground-breaking titles, the aim of this series is to explore the domestic and international implications of China’s rise and transformation through a number of key areas including politics, development and ­foreign policy. The series will also give a strong voice to non-western perspectives on China’s rise in order to provide a forum that connects and compares the views of academics from both the east and west reflecting the truly international nature of the discipline. More information about this series at http://www.palgrave.com/gp/series/14541 Marcus P. Chu Politics of Mega-­Events in China’s Hong Kong and Macao Marcus P. Chu Political Science Department Lingnan University Hong Kong, China Politics and Development of Contemporary China ISBN 978-3-030-13867-7 ISBN 978-3-030-13868-4 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-13868-4 Library of Congress Control Number: 2019933287 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the ­publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and ­institutional affiliations. This Palgrave Pivot imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG. The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland PREFACE Since the handovers, Hong Kong and Macao, under the One Country Two Systems principle, continue the capitalist practice and order left by their British and Portuguese colonizers. They, meanwhile, also derive vari- ous all-out supports from China. Therefore, while the former retains itself as one of the freest economies in the world, the latter has become the wealthiest casino city on the planet. In this context, the two Special Administrative Regions (SARs) are zealous in staging mega-events, which are extensively viewed as a means to benefit the economy of the hosts and/or demonstrate their cultural attractiveness. Paradoxically, the atti- tudes of the Chinese and SAR authorities toward the events vary from case to case. To understand the reasons behind, a total of 24 cases—including 14 conferences and 10 sporting games overseen by the prominent interna- tional organizations and multinational corporations—are investigated. The findings reveal that the central and local governments enthusiastically give backing as long as the gatherings are able to raise their popularity, facilitate the domestic stability of China, Hong Kong, and Macao and their international engagement, boost the three regions’ profile and com- petitiveness in the global stage, and/or deepen the two cities’ integration into the Mainland. Otherwise, they hold neutral, indifferent, and even opposite stances, although the galas may generate lucrative profit. In short, this book provides an in-depth account of how the mega-events are leveraged for defending the all-round political interests of both China and the SARs. Hong Kong, China Marcus P. Chu v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I firstly would like to thank Brian Bridges, Annie Chan, Chan Che-po, Gerald Chan, Chen Hon-fai, Francis Cheung, Lawrence Ho, Agnes Lam, Alan Lee, Simon Li, Vic Li, Sonny Lo, Vivian Lun, Ma Yuhuai, Eric Man, Paul O’Connor, Thomas Voon, Shalendra Sharma, Wong Yiu-chung, Eilo Yu, and Raymond Yuen for their advice and help during my journey of drafting this monograph. I am also grateful to Taylor and Francis for allowing me to use some parts of my three published articles—(1) “Post-handover Hong Kong’s international sporting bids: a win-less-lose-more journey,” International Journal of the History of Sport, 30(10), 2016, 1193–1208, https://doi.org /10.1080/09523367.2016.1267149; (2) “From Integration with China to engagement with the world: mega-sports events at post-handover Macau,” International Journal of the History of Sport, 33(11), 2016, 1254–1267, https://doi.org/10.1080/09523367.2016.1264390; and (3) “Extravagance and its decline: China’s triple East Asian Games since the 2000s,” Asia Pacific Journal of Sport and Social Science, 6(1), 2017, 19–33, https://doi.org/10.1080/21640599.2016.1277083—in this book. To meet the publication requirement of Palgrave, they have been all rewritten. The last section of Chap. 5 was presented in the 2018 International Conference on Sports History and Culture hosted by the School of Physical Education, Shaanxi Normal University. I appreciate Professors Fan Hong, Paul Lu, Shi Bing, Yang Jing, and Zhang Jinqiao for their invitation and hospitality. vii viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Lastly, my deepest gratitude is extended to late Professor Ming K. Chan for his encouragement, guidance, and support. I dedicate this book to the memory of him. CONTENTS 1 Introduction 1 1.1 Hong Kong’s Application for 1997 WBG and IMF Annual Meetings 3 1.2 Macao’s Application for 2005 EAG 8 1.3 Objectives 13 References 16 2 International Conferences in China’s Hong Kong 21 2.1 Hong Kong 1997 WBG and IMF Annual Meetings 22 2.2 Hong Kong 2001 FGF and 2002 WCOA 26 2.3 Hong Kong 2005 WTO Ministerial Conference and 2006 ITU Telecom World 33 2.4 Hong Kong’s Bid for 2011 IOC Session 40 2.5 Hong Kong’s Discontinuation to Host 2014 APEC Finance Ministerial Meeting 44 2.6 Summary 46 References 49 3 International Sporting Games in China’s Hong Kong 61 3.1 Hong Kong’s Bids for 2006 Asian Games and 2006 FESPIC Games 62 3.2 Hong Kong 2008 Summer Olympics Equestrian Events and 2009 EAG 67 ix x Contents 3.3 Hong Kong’s Bids for 2023 Asian Games and 2015 FINA World Championships 76 3.4 Hong Kong’s Bid for 2022 Gay Games 81 3.5 Summary 84 References 87 4 International Conferences and Sporting Games in China’s Macao 99 4.1 Macao 2005 EAG 100 4.2 Macao 2007 AIG and 2012 OCA General Assembly 105 4.3 CLCECCF Ministerial Conferences since 2003 and Macao 2006 Lusophonia Games 111 4.4 Macao 2014 APEC Tourism Ministerial Meeting 116 4.5 Summary 122 References 123 5 Conclusion 133 5.1 Hong Kong and Macao 134 5.2 China 136 5.3 Looking Ahead 138 References 143 Index 147 ABBREVIATIONS ACOLOP Association of the Portuguese Speaking Olympic Committees AFC Asian Football Confederation AIG Asian Indoor Games AIIB Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank AL Legislative Assembly APEC Asia Pacific Economic and Co-operation CCP Chinese Communist Party CEPA Closed Economic Partnership Agreement CGAS China General Administration of Sport CLCECCF China-Lusophone Countries Economic and Commercial Co-operation Forum COC Chinese Olympic Committee CODM Sports and Olympic Committee of Macao, China CPPCC Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference DAB Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress DPP Democratic Progressive Party EAG East Asian Games EAGA East Asian Games Association EOC Equal Opportunity Commission FESPIC Games Far East and South Pacific Games for the Disabled FGF Fortune Global Forum FGG Federation of the Gay Games FIFA Fédération Internationale de Football Association FINA Fédération Internationale de Natation HKASA Hong Kong Amateur Swimming Association HKICPA Hong Kong Institute of Certificated Public Accountants HKJC Hong Kong Jockey Club xi xii Abbreviations HKMA Hong Kong Monetary Authority HKSAPD Hong Kong Paralympics Committee and Sports Association for the Physically Disabled HKSI Hong Kong Sports Institute HKTB Hong Kong Tourism Board IEF International Equestrianism Federation IFA International Federation of Accountants IMF International Monetary Fund IOC International Olympic Committee ITU International Telecommunication Union LegCo Legislative Council LOCPG Central People’s Government Liaison Office MFA Macao Football Association MFN Most Favored Nation MOC Macao Olympic Committee MOFA Ministry of Foreign Affairs NPC National People’s Congress OCA Olympic Council of Asia OECD Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development PRC People’s Republic of China ROC Republic of China SAR Special Administrative Region SARS Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome SF&OC Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China UNWTO United Nations World Tourism Organization WBG World Bank Group WCOA World Congress of Accountants WTO World Trade Organization CHAPTER 1 Introduction Abstract This chapter is composed of two parts.