The Chief Executive, in formal terms, will be treated in Lisbon at the level of receptions that would be prepared for a head of state, such as Xi Jinping himself. That is, well above the formalities due to the leader of a Special Autonomous Region. In Brussels, where he will travel on his return to Macau, the contrast is evident and the importance given to him is much less.
Ho Iat Seng will be received at the highest level in Portugal. President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa; Prime Minister, António Costa – the first and third figures of the State protocol – are already confirmed for the third week of April.
PLATAFORMA, which last week exclusively reported this operation, has meanwhile found out that a meeting with the President of the Assembly of the Republic, Augusto Santos Silva – second figure of the State – is also on the table, although at this point it is more difficult to set a concrete date for this meeting, in an already busy schedule of the Chief Executive of Macau in Lisbon. The fact is that sources connected to the process guarantee that every effort is being made for Ho Iat Seng to be received by the three major figures of the State protocol in Portugal.
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An honor traditionally granted only to foreign heads of state – and few. Be that as it may, clearly a formal agenda at the highest level by Portugal, which grants Ho Iat Seng treatment well above his political status.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, João Gomes Cravinho, will also receive Ho Iat Seng, although in this case the exact date has yet to be confirmed.
OPORTO ENTERS THE RACE
Meanwhile, PLATAFORMA confirmed that the Mayor of Oporto, Rui Moreira, is making efforts so that Ho Iat Seng also goes to the city of Oporto. An operation for which the Palace of Praia Grande has already shown availability; and that has no countermove from the Portuguese Government. In this case, it has not yet been possible for our newspaper to confirm details about this displacement.
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But it is a fact that Rui Moreira gave special attention to Porto’s twinning with Macau, a figure that is rarely explored by Portuguese cities. This relationship was nurtured by the government of Chui Sai On, who went to Porto on what was the last mission of a Macau SAR leader in Portugal, with particular commitment in the following years by Alexis Tam – first as chief of staff; then as secretary for Social Affairs, Education and Culture of the previous Chief Executive.
This heavy and especially relevant agenda, which has not yet been confirmed by the Macau SAR – or Portuguese – authorities, is being seen in Macau as a “very strong” political signal from the Macau – and China – government to resume diplomatic relations with Portugal – and the very concept of Macau as a Lusophone platform.
But in Lisbon, too, this displacement has an exceptional political semiotic. While special importance is traditionally given in Lisbon to Macau’s diplomatic missions, “this is a special time, given the long interruption in direct relations caused by Macau’s isolation” during the years of the Covid-zero policy, which coincided with Ho Iat Seng’s mandate.
“We hope that Macau and China understand the signal that Lisbon is giving,” and that it has “above all to do with a sign of good will and a bet on the future; and not exactly with what has happened recently,” warns a Portuguese source with knowledge of the process behind the scenes in Lisbon. And it is also a fact, alerts another source in Lisbon, that “this is a clear response from Portugal to the relationship it wants to have with Macau, at a time when the political environment in Europe and its Atlantic Alliance creates blockages” with regard to relations with China.
BRUSSELS LOWERS THE LEVEL
Proof of this tense relationship with China, but also of a less relevant interpretation of Macau’s role in international relations, is the difficulty Ho Iat Seng is facing in getting meetings at the highest level on his trip to Brussels, where he will be on his way back to Macau. A source connected to this process says that it will be “practically impossible” for the Chief Executive to be received by the President of the Council, Charles Michel, or even by the President of the European Commission, Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen. The high representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrel, is at this point the best hypothesis on the table. Still waiting for confirmation.
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On the one hand, they explain to PLATAFORMA, the European Union is far from giving Macau the importance that Portugal is willing to give it; on the other, Brussels’ focus in this region of the world is clearly on Hong Kong; moreover, with an agenda far removed from the one Beijing would like. This circumstance also serves Portugal to demonstrate the “goodwill” with which it is embarking on this new cycle of relations with Macau, marked by the political semiotics with which the displacement of Ho Iat Seng is being handled.
HUSTLE AND BUSTLE IN MACAU
Although April (the third week) is still relatively far away, one can already see the care with which the Palace of Praia Grande is preparing this operation. The whole operation is being directed directly by the Chief Executive’s Office, in direct connection with the Social Communication Office (GCS), given the importance recognized to the media repercussion of this trip, not only in Macau and China, but also in Portugal. It is, in fact, the GCS that will be responsible for the formal announcement and officialization of the agenda.
The Secretary for Economy and Finance, Lei Wai Nong, who oversees especially relevant areas in the current context, including the promotion of foreign investment, and tourism promotion, will have a relevant role in the preparation of this mission.
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Although it has not yet been possible to ascertain in what way, a specific role is also expected from the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Ao Ieong U, namely in the field of education and teaching of the Portuguese language, other key points on Ho Iat Seng’s agenda.
In this field, PLATAFORMA can advance that a meeting is already planned with students in Lisbon and another with Portuguese businessmen, in order to promote, on the one hand, bilingualism in Macau and, on the other, the opening to foreign investment. In the latter case, as far as we could ascertain, there will be some distance between the intentions with which both sides will approach the issue.
If on the Portuguese side the expectation is where it has always been; focused on attracting Chinese investment, seeing Macau as a bridge and a place of mediation; this time Ho Iat Seng will take another message, which is the importance of Portuguese investment in Macau, with his eyes already fixed on the Great Bay. This is a relatively new topic in Portugal, but one on which Macau intends to focus; moreover, with strong support from Beijing for this agenda.
