Qiao Xiaoyang, honorary doctor of the University of\nMacau (UM), former chairman of the Legal Committee of the National People\u2019s\nCongress (NPC), and chairman of the Hong Kong and Macao Basic Law Committee of\nthe NPC Standing Committee, today (9 November) gave a lecture in UM\u2019s Ho Yin\nConference Hall. He discussed the relationship between the central government\u2019s\noverall jurisdiction over Macao and the high degree of autonomy of the Macao\nSpecial Administrative Region (SAR) from three perspectives. The talk attracted\nmany UM faculty members and students.<\/p>
In his speech, UM Rector Yonghua Song said that Qiao\nXiaoyang participated in or was in charge of the drafting or amending of dozens\nof laws, including the Amendment to the Constitution, having made a tremendous\ncontribution to the legislation in China and the return of Hong Kong and Macao.\nHis ties with Macao and UM go back a long way. He was involved in the central\ngovernment\u2019s authorising Macao SAR to exercise jurisdiction over the new\ncampus, the selection of the campus site, as well as the groundbreaking ceremony\nand the inauguration of the new campus. Therefore, Qiao was a contributor and a\nkey facilitator of UM\u2019s new campus project. Rector Song added that the\nachievements Macao has attained over the past two decades since Macao\u2019s return\nto the motherland would not have been possible without the guidance of the\nConstitution and the successful implementation of the Basic Law and the \u2018One\nCountry, Two Systems\u2019 policy. <\/p>
During the lecture, Qiao discussed the relationship\nbetween the central government\u2019s overall jurisdiction over Macao and the high\ndegree of autonomy of Macao SAR, from three perspectives, namely \u2018the proposal\nof the central government\u2019s overall jurisdiction over Macao and its meaning\u2019,\n\u2018the high degree of autonomy of Macao SAR and authorisation-related issues\u2019,\nand \u2018questions and answers regarding the central government\u2019s overall\njurisdiction over Macao\u2019. Qiao pointed out that when the sovereignty over Macao\nwas returned to China in 1999, it essentially enabled China to resume its\njurisdiction over Macao. Within the \u2018One Country\u2019 framework, the central\ngovernment has overall jurisdiction over all its territories, which is an\nimportant principle of the Constitution. In the case of Macao, when resuming\nits overall jurisdiction over Macao SAR, the central government established the\n\u2018One Country, Two Systems\u2019 policy and the Basic Law, which stipulate that\ncertain powers shall be exercised directly by the organs under the central\ngovernment, while certain powers shall be jointly exercised by the organs under\nthe central government and the Macao SAR government. The central government\nauthorised Macao SAR to manage its internal affairs that do not involve the\ncentral government or the mainland. Therefore, the high degree of autonomy\nenjoyed by Macao is the result of the central government\u2019s exercising overall\njurisdiction over Macao.<\/p>
Qiao\nexplained that within the \u2018One Country\u2019 framework, the relationship between the\ncentral government and the Macao SAR government in terms of power is one of\nauthorisation. The Basic Law established a rigorous authorisation system to\nensure that Macao SAR enjoys a high degree of autonomy but will under no\ncircumstances become an independent or semi-independent political entity, in\norder to safeguard the country\u2019s sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity.\nThe relationship between the central government\u2019s overall jurisdiction and the\nSAR\u2019s high degree of autonomy is akin to the relationship between the source of\na river and the river; the two are not mutually exclusive. Therefore, whether\nin theory or practice, the two must never be held as opposing positions, and\nthe high degree of autonomy must never be used to challenge or undermine the\ncentral government\u2019s overall jurisdiction.<\/p>
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Reviewing the implementation of the Basic Law in\nMacao over the past two decades, Qiao pointed out that from the outset, the\nMacao SAR government and people from all walks of life in Macao correctly grasped\nthe relationship between the central government\u2019s overall jurisdiction and\nMacao SAR\u2019s high degree of autonomy. Over the past 20 years, there has never\nbeen any instance in which the constitutional relationship between the central\ngovernment and the Macao SAR government was disputed; nor has there been any\ninstance in which the central government\u2019s authority was publicly challenged.\nThis fully demonstrates that Macao residents have a very strong sense of\nnational identity and great respect for the constitution. This also shows that\nthe academic community in Macao has done a good job of promoting the \u2018One\nCountry, Two Systems\u2019 policy and the Basic Law in Macao; Therefore, the central\ngovernment\u2019s overall jurisdiction and the Macao SAR\u2019s high degree of autonomy\nhave been well integrated, demonstrating the successful implementation of the\n\u2018One Country, Two Systems\u2019 policy with local characteristics. <\/p>
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Source: Faculty of Law <\/p>
<\/p>
Media Contact Information:
Communications Office, University of Macau<\/p>
Albee Lei Tel\uff1a(853) 88228004
Kelvin U Tel\uff1a(853) 88224322
Email\uff1aprs.media@um.edu.mo
UM Website\uff1awww.um.edu.mo<\/p><\/div>
<\/p>\n \n ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Qiao Xiaoyang, honorary doctor of the University of Macau (UM), former chairman of the Legal Committee of the National People\u2019s Congress (NPC), and chairman of the Hong Kong and Macao…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":35216,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[60],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-35214","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-press-release"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n