The outlying island of Kinmen may beat Penghu in the race to open Taiwan’s first casino resort.
It follows the surprise defeat of the pro-casino lobby in a referendum on Penghu last month. The poll result was a bitter blow to those locals and investors who have been campaigning on and off in government circles for 16 years for the right to allow Penghu to develop one or more casinos. The pro-lobby argued it would extend the tourism season into the winter and boost the flagging local economy.
By contrast, Kinmen, which lies only a few kilometres offshore from the Chinese Mainland, appears keen to get moving with the scheme. Last weekend, the Kinmen county government reportedly held the first meeting of a steering committee to discuss details.
Under Taiwan’s current system, Kinmen will also need to hold a referendum before anything can happen.
On 26th September, residents of Penghu unexpectedly rejected by 17,359 votes to 13,397 a proposal to allow gambling. A law passed by Taiwan’s legislature in January allows gambling offshore, but not on the main island of Taiwan.
While Penghu is in the middle of the Taiwan Strait, Kinmen—153 square kilometres in area—is only a short distance from Xiamen in Fujian province. Since 2001, a boat service has linked Kinmen with the Chinese Mainland. It’s been reported that in the last eight years, more than two million PRC residents have made the hour-long trip. Kinmen county is now pressing Taiwan’s central government in Taipei to build a bridge costing NTD10 billion (USD310 million) between the two places.
Environmentalists say Penghu and Kinmen have unspoilt environments. Pro-gaming lobbyists say they’re chronically underdeveloped. In both cases, it’s because under the isolationist policy in place until 1992, Taiwan turned them into island fortresses against a possible invasion by the PRC. President Chiang Kai-shek reportedly stationed 100,000 troops on Kinmen in a series of underground tunnels and bunkers and there was a curfew after dark.
There’s little sign yet, though, that divisions at national political level on casinos have been resolved, despite the big parliamentary majority recorded when the enabling legislation was passed at the beginning of this year. That parliamentary ‘yes’ may have been more an indication of the ruling government’s party loyalty and voting discipline than about genuine enthusiasm for the casino initiative, say some commentators on Taiwanese politics.
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