By Sherry Chan
“Could I borrow some preserved bean curd and buy you a new bottle of it tomorrow?” Miss Chong asked. “Sure. I have many bottles of them. Just take one,” her neighbor replied readily. This conversation was found in Ka Ho Village. Unfortunately, this kind of simple lifestyle no longer exists in the center of Macao due to increasing foreign laborers that have come in recently. It seems Ka Ho Village is the last “Peach Garden” in Macao.
Banner in Ka Ho Village: Destroy my home. Grab my fortune.
Ka Ho Village is in the northeast part of Coloane in Macao. Most villagers belong to Chong’s clan who has settled in Coloane by getting a papyrus deed from the government of the Qing Dynasty in the 19th century. However, the papyrus deed’s legal status is ambiguous in the Macao Basic Law.
According to the Article 7 of Chapter 1 in the Macao Basic Law: “Land and natural resources within the territory of the Macao Special Administrative Region, except in accordance with the law prior to the establishment of Macao SAR confirmed private land, owned by the state and are managed, used and developed by Macao SAR who is able to lease or grant to individuals, legal persons for use or development as all benefits from the transaction above are owned by Macao SAR.” In this context, villagers of Ka Ho have to move out because the Macao government has to take back the land.
Chong, a villager of Ka Ho Village.
Chong, one of the villagers, said, “The government would take back the land just because of the collusion between the government and businessmen. The government nowadays just focuses on the pecuniary interest.” She mentioned that she understood the city development is essential but the government should have the arrangement for villagers’ future life. Until now, the government has not approved the rebuilding projects of damaged brick houses.
Meanwhile, the greatest impact on the villagers is the air pollution caused by the cement plant nearby. “I must wipe the dirt for four to five times per day to keep my house clean,” Chong said, pointing to the car parked by the road which was covered with a thick layer of dust in just half a day. “There are many old people and children here. The quality of the environment is absolutely bad for human beings. But the government has not done anything to improve the situation because they aim at dislodging us, I know.”
“Hey, Miss Chong. Are you going downtown? Do you want a free ride?” one of Chong’s neighbors asked while he was driving his car during the interview. “No, thanks,” Chong replied with a big smile.
In recent years, the economy of Macao has been developing rapidly. At the same time, many valuable things are at risk of disappearing, especially the moral standards and local customs. In order to attract more tourists, valuable wetland has been sacrificed for building gigantic casinos and hotels, which has destroyed the ecological environment. Besides, citizens’ living quality has been affected due to an influx of tourists. Even now, the last remaining village, which preserves a local historic culture in Macao, is forced to be displaced. Sometimes, I may ask myself, “Is money the only thing that remains in our society?”