Hostname: page-component-76fb5796d-qxdb6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-26T04:57:55.660Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

How Casinoization Affects the Police in Macao

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 July 2023

Tang In Lao  and
Jianhua Xu
Tang In Lao
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Macau, Macau, China
Jianhua Xu*
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Macau, Macau, China
*
Corresponding author: Jianhua Xu; Email: jianhuaxu@um.edu.mo
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The past two decades have witnessed Macao’s development into the casino capital of the world. Casinos have significantly transformed all respects of Macao society—a phenomenon termed as the casinoization of Macao. While much research has explored how casinoization has affected Macao’s socioeconomic developments, empirical research on the relationship between casinoization and law enforcement agencies is extremely limited. Using official statistics and interviews with serving and retired police officers as well as police applicants in Macao, this article examines the quick-money mentality, laissez-faire regulation, and the paradox of plenty, three features of casinoization, and their profound impact on the Macao police. First, the early phase of casino liberalization created a draining effect on human capital from the police force. Second, the lucrative casino tax revenues empowered the government to resolve the labour shortage issue and significantly improve the police image. Third, casinoization inadvertently reinforced the colonial legacy of laissez-faire regulation, hampering the progress of institutional reforms. Fourth, the decline of casino has contributed to the unprecedented “police fever” among the youth in Macao.

Keywords

casinospoliceMacaopost-colonialismliberalization
Type
Research Article
Information
Asian Journal of Law and Society , First View , pp. 1 - 22
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Asian Journal of Law and Society

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Adams, P. J. (2007). Gambling, Freedom and Democracy. New York: Routledge.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Akhremenko, A. & Shulika, Y.. (2019). “Political Security in Authoritarian Systems with a Resource Rent Economy: A Result of the ‘Social Contract’ and High Resource Prices?” Przegląd Strategiczny, 12: 299–318.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Austrin, T., & West, J.. (2005). “Skills and Surveillance in Casino Gaming: Work, Consumption and Regulation.” Work, Employment and Society, 19(2): 305–26.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bedford, K., Casey, D. & Flynn, A.. (2018). “Keeping Chance in Its Place: The Socio-Legal Regulation of Gambling.” Journal of Law and Social Policy, 30: 1–10.Google Scholar
Bloomberg News (2021). “Some Macau Casinos to Shut Junket-Operated VIP Rooms, Sources Say,” https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021–12–07/some-macau-casinos-said-to-shut-junket-operated-vip-rooms (accessed 1 November 2022)Google Scholar
Calcagno, P. T., Walker, D. M. & Jackson, J. D.. (2010). “Determinants of the Probability and Timing of Commercial Casino Legalization in the United States.” Public Choice, 142(1): 69–90.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chandler, C. (1999). “China Regains Macau After 442 Years,” https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPcap/1999–12/20/058r-122099-idx.html (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
Corden, W. M. & Neary, J. P.. (1982). “Booming Sector and De-industrialisation in a Small Open Economy.” The Economic Journal, 92(368): 825–48.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cosgrave, J. F. & Klassen, T. R.. (2009). Casino State: Legalized Gambling in Canada. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cust, J., Devarajan, S. & Mandon, P.. (2022). “Dutch Disease and the Public Sector: How Natural Resources Can Undermine Competitiveness in Africa.” Journal of African Economies, 31: i10–i32.Google Scholar
Dudley, D. (2021). “World Bank Raises Questions About Gulf’s Huge Public Sector Wage Bill,” https://www.forbes.com/sites/dominicdudley/2021/12/20/world-bank-raises-questions-about-gulfs-huge-public-sector-wage-bill/?sh=6789646a21b4 (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
Figart, D. M. & Mutari, E.. (2014). “Is the Casino Economy Creating Jobs?” Challenge, 57(2): 91–108.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Garrett, T. A. (2004). “Casino Gaming and Local Employment Trends.” Review-Federal Reserve Bank of Saint Louis, 86(1): 9–22.Google Scholar
Geisler, K. R. & Nichols, M. W.. (2016). “Riverboat Casino Gambling Impacts on Employment and Income in Host and Surrounding Counties.” The Annals of Regional Science, 56: 101–23.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gender Equality Committee—EY. (2022). “Gender Statistics of Existing Police Officers,” https://www.gender.ey.gov.tw/GECDB/Stat_Statistics_DetailData.aspx?sn=BQiuK9T6Xp3ntef6m7W!yA%40%40/ (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
Godinho, J. (2014). “Casino Gaming in Macau: Evolution, Regulation and Challenges.” UNLV Gaming LJ, 5: 1.Google Scholar
Hao, Y., Sheng, L., & Pan, G.. (2017). Political Economy of Macao since 1999: The Dilemma of Success. Singapore: Palgrave.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ho, L. K. K. & Lam, A. I. F.. (2014). “Transformation of Macau Policing: From a Portuguese Colony to China’s SAR.” Crime, Law and Social Change 61(4): 417–37.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hong Kong Police Force. (2022). “Police in Figures,” https://www.police.gov.hk/ppp_en/09_statistics/index.html/ (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
Hung, E. & Choi, A.. (2012). “From Societal to State Corporatism: The Making of the ‘Uncivil’ Society in Macau” Presented at The Dynamics of Civil Society Coalitions in Asia Conference, City University of Hong Kong, February 2012.Google Scholar
Kabbani, N. & Mimoune, N. B.. (2021). “Economic Diversification in the Gulf: Time to Redouble Efforts,” https://www.brookings.edu/research/economic-diversification-in-the-gulf-time-to-redouble-efforts/#footref-41/ (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
Kwong, B. (2014). “Political Change and Institutional Reform of Macao Police Forces.” Asian Education and Development Studies, 3(3): 235–42.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Liu, X. (2008). “Jinrong Haixiao Xia Tiefanwan Chixiang Aomen Ren Zhadui Kao Gongwuyuan [Under Financial Crisis, Iron Rice Bowl Becomes Aromatic. Macau People Flocked to Join the Civil Service],” https://www.chinanews.com.cn/hb/news/2008/12–29/1506073.shtml/ (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
Lo, T. W. & Kwok, S. I.. (2017). “Triad Organized Crime in Macau Casinos: Extra-Legal Governance and Entrepreneurship.” British Journal of Criminology, 57(3): 589–607.Google Scholar
Lou, L. (2021). “Casino Capitalism in the Era of COVID-19: Examining Macau’s Pandemic Response.” Social Transformations in Chinese Societies, 17(2): 69–79.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Macao Daily. (2019). “Ào èrqiān rén yōng zìwèi qiāng [Translation],” https://www.cyberctm.com/zh_TW/news/mobile/detail/2431060 (accessed 20 September 2022).Google Scholar
MSAR Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau. (2022). “Monthly Gross Revenue from Games of Fortune,” https://dicj.gov.mo/web/en/information/dadosestat_mensal/ (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
MSAR Information Bureau. (2021). “Macao Yearbook,” https://yearbook.gcs.gov.mo/en/books?term=2021/ (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
MSAR Printing Bureau. (2021). “Fiscal Year Budget 2001–2019,” https://www.io.gov.mo/cn/home/ (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
MSAR Public Security Forces Affairs Bureau. (2021). “Public Security Forces Recruitment Statistics Yearly Report (Unpublished),” (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
MSAR Public Security Police Force. (2021). “Public Security Police Force Yearly Report,” https://www.fsm.gov.mo/psp/cht/psp_top3_Y.html/ (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
MSAR Statistics and Census Service. (2022). “Time Series Database (2004–2020),” https://www.dsec.gov.mo/ts/#!/step1/en-US/ (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
Mutari, E. & Figart, D. M.. (2015). Just One More Hand: Life in the Casino Economy. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.Google Scholar
National Gambling Impact & Policy Commission. (1999). “The National Gambling Impact Study Commission: Final Report,” https://govinfo.library.unt.edu/ngisc/reports/7.pdf (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
O’Regan, M. (2019). “Post-Colonial Macau: Hope and Despair in a World Centre of Tourism and Leisure.” Via. Tourism Review, 16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Radwan, I. & Malik, I. A.. (2021). “Tackling the Public Sector Wage Bill in the GCC,” https://blogs.worldbank.org/governance/tackling-public-sector-wage-bill-gcc/ (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
Riley, C. (2014). “Macau’s Gambling Industry Dwarfs Vegas,” https://money.cnn.com/2014/01/06/news/macau-casino-gambling/ (accessed 20 September 2022).Google Scholar
Schuman, M. (2005). “The Great Game,” https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,1022658,00.html/ (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
Scoggins, S. E. (2021). Policing China: Street-Level Cops in the Shadow of Protest. New York: Cornell University Press.Google Scholar
Scott, A. W. (2022). “Macau Has Fallen,” https://www.asgam.com/index.php/2022/07/28/macau-has-fallen/ (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
Seelig, M. Y. & Seelig, J. H.. (1998). “‘Place Your Bets!’ On Gambling, Government and Society.” Canadian Public Policy/Analyse de politiques, 24(1): 91–106.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shi, W. & Liu, S. D.. (2014). “Living with Casinos: The Experience of Young Dealers in Macau.” Journal of Youth Studies, 17(7): 930–47.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Singapore Police Force. (2020). “SPF Annual Report 2019,” https://www.police.gov.sg/Media-Room/Publications?filter=9BC92AE1F3FF452D9CECC3D03C7D5BCB/ (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
Sulkunen, P., et al. (2021). “Setting Limits: Gambling, Science and Public Policy—Summary of Results.” Addiction, 116(1): 32–40.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Varese, F., Wang, P. & Wong, R. W. Y.. (2019). “‘Why Should I Trust You with My Money?’: Credible Commitments in the Informal Economy in China.” The British Journal of Criminology, 59(3): 594–613.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wong, W. K. (2020). “Understanding Taxi Overcharging in Macau: A Criminological Theory of Casinoisation.” Master of Social Science Thesis, University of Macau.Google Scholar
World Bank. (2022). “GDP (Current US$)—Macao SAR, China,” https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD?locations=MO/ (accessed 1 November 2022).Google Scholar
Xu, J., Lao, T. I., Sun, G. & Yao, Z.. (2021). “The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Crime in Macao: A Routine Activity Approach.” Journal of Macau Studies, 100(1): 16–33.Google Scholar
Zabielskis, P. (2015). “Too Big to Be Bad? Implications for Theory and Review of Research on Crimes, Vices, and Misdeeds in the Casino Culture of Macau.” Crime, Law and Social Change, 64(1): 127–52.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zandonai, S. S. (2015). “Casino Development and Urban Transformation in Macau.” IIAS Newsletters, 72: 10–1.Google Scholar