37
According to Ng Sik Yiu,
representative of the
Liberal Trade Union of
Gaming and Construction
Industries, some workers
were asked to sign
agreements that allowed
their work visas to be
cancelled at any moment
said one. “There’s an intense distrust of the government and the they will be renewed.
PRC at the moment, what’s to say the same thing won’t happen Trying to separate the elements of this situation is the hard
all over again. The government has not made it easy to work or bit. Firstly LVS experiences financial woes and will obviously
live here. Sure, some will consider it but it will most certainly make some cutbacks, then the government recalls tens of thou-
cost a lot more to lure anyone back,’’ he adds. sands of bluecards, not only restricted to LVS but across nearly
Applying for and securing a bluecard has never been a sim- every property and industry.
ple or quick process. One worker pointed out: “It takes three or As a result, the conspiracy theorists are having a field day.
four months to get a bluecard now, so how are they going to do There are those who believe that the Macau Government,
that in six months? Do they just decide, OK we’ll start again, directed by Beijing, are removing all the foreigners from the
then how does the application process work? city so that they can take over once Edmund Ho’s term is up.
“The process is slow now and that’s in a situation with a Already there have been organisations sniffing around the
moderate to steady influx, if you re-open the projects and re- thinned out carcass of LVS interests in Macau.
quire 3,000 people to be processed how are they going to do The result? Macau becomes a Chinese destination for Chi-
that? So it makes you wonder if they actually have any inten- nese and not the international city we all thought it was becom-
tion for that to happen at all,’’ another redundant expat says. ing with the world at its feet.
Local airlines are still battling to open international routes
Conspiracy theories and bring more tourists to the city, but as positive as that would
be economically, again Macau doesn’t have the infrastructure
One project manager was told by the Venetian when blue- to cope with the influx.
card removal began that anyone who is a Macau citizen stays, Those who have helped to build the city that only five years
whether they’re good bad or indifferent: “They’re trying to ago was still referred to as a ‘sleepy enclave’, are understand-
play nice with the government and not fire any Macau workers, ably upset and somewhat bitter at the handling of this situation,
which is just ridiculous. Skill sets don’t come into it at all.” but for the most part they are very sad that the dream that they
And it’s not over. Many bluecards are up for renewal in late shared may have come to an end.
December and all have been told there are no guarantees that As one concluded “greed is a funny thing isn’t it?”
december 2008
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