Opinion article by Sun In – Macao Daily News
An important opinion article by Sun In was published in the Macao Daily News on Tuesday titled “The EAC’s decisions are legal and well-founded, and the CSNS’s review opinions are unassailable.”
The article highlighted that the Macao SAR government and the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macao SAR on Tuesday issued statements both expressing their full support for the decisions made by the Electoral Affairs Commission of the Legislative Assembly (EAC) in accordance with the law.
They affirmed their backing for the EAC’s commitment to uphold the law and to fully implement the principle of “Patriots Governing Macao”, underscoring a clear stance of zero tolerance towards any candidates who do not support the Macao Basic Law or show disloyalty to the Macao SAR of the People’s Republic of China (PRC).
Activities that jeopardise national sovereignty and security, challenge the authority of the central government and the Basic Law, and seek to infiltrate and disrupt the Chinese mainland via the Hong Kong and Macao SARs are crossing a red line and are absolutely prohibited.
The article underlined that enhancing and refining the candidate qualification review mechanism, as the cornerstone of the new electoral system of the Macao Legislative Assembly, is an inevitable requirement for the full enactment of the “Patriots Governing Macao” principle, because it is a universal political doctrine that political power must be entrusted to patriots. We must always adhere to the principle of “Patriots Governing Macao” and ensure that the governance of the Macao SAR remains firmly in the hands of patriots. This fundamental principle not only impacts directly the sovereignty, security, and development interests of the nation, but also the long-term prosperity and stability of Macao. It is an essential requirement for safeguarding long-term stability of Macao and must never be compromised at any time. Over the 25 years since Macao’s reunification with the motherland, the core values of patriotism and affection for Macao have consistently prevailed in the city. The members of the Legislative Assembly are crucial members of the SAR’s governance team and must be staunch patriots. The 2024 revision of the “Legislative Assembly Election Law” introduced new institutional regulations to establish a safeguarding measure for the SAR’s government. This measure aims to facilitate the entry of resolute patriots while barring “pseudo patriots”, particularly those anti-China and Macao-disrupting candidates who feign support and loyalty on the surface but covertly collude with external forces to jeopardise national security and the stability of the SAR from infiltrating the Legislative Assembly.
It is the constitutional obligation and statutory power of the Committee for Safeguarding National Security of the Macao SAR (CSNS) to review and determine whether the candidates uphold the Basic Law and demonstrate loyalty to the Macao SAR. Since the Macao SAR is a local administrative region directly under the Central People’s Government, the Constitution and the Basic Law jointly establish the constitutional framework of the Special Administrative Region. Therefore, candidates must uphold the Macao Basic Law and demonstrate loyalty to the Macao SAR of the People’s Republic of China, and it is especially crucial for them to safeguard the constitutional order established jointly by the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China and the Basic Law. The CSNS is the body that is responsible for the decision-making and the overall coordination of matters related to safeguarding national security in the Macao SAR. It is the highest authority in the Macao SAR tasked with maintaining national security. It is indisputable that the CSNS conducts a substantive review and evaluation of candidates in accordance with the law and subsequently provides the decisive review opinions. This approach is fully justified both legally and functionally, highlighting the utmost importance of safeguarding national security.
The decisions made by the EAC based on the review opinions of the CSNS are absolutely authoritative and unassailable. The review opinions issued by the CSNS on the candidates’ “non-support and non-loyalty” are universally binding and absolutely authoritative. Any public authority and parties in the Macao SAR, including the Electoral Affairs Commission of the Legislative Assembly, must comply with the review opinions. The EAC follows the review opinions of the CSNS and has no room for discretion. It is a comprehensibly applicable rule of law principle that no objection may be filed, nor judicial appeals brought, against the decisions of the EAC. This approach is consistent with the legal basis such as the Hong Kong National Security Law and the National People’s Congress’s (NPC) amendment to Annex II to the Basic Law of Hong Kong in 2021.
The article specifically pointed out that the decisions of the EAC and the review opinions of the CSNS will withstand the test of time. Both the decisions of the EAC and the review opinions of the CSNS adhere to rigorous legal procedures. Together, they form an integrated whole, creating a closed loop in terms of legal logic and factual evidence. Essentially, the CSNS’ judgement on whether candidates support the Macao Basic Law and are loyal to the Macao SAR of the People’s Republic of China involves assessing their political stance and conduct, and determining – based on factual evidence – whether any “non-supportive” or “disloyal” actions exist among the candidates. This process involves both the determination of legal facts and the evaluation of the chain of evidence established on a solid factual basis, so as to evaluate trends in the candidates’ political loyalty and identify potential risks. The goal is to ensure that all candidates are steadfast patriots in their political stance and conduct.
In conclusion, Sun In’s article emphasised that in today’s world—marked by chaos and intensifying competition among major powers—the uncertainties of both internal and external environments must be addressed by prioritising the stability of national development and Macao’s growth. It is believed that all sectors of Macao society will be able to accurately understand the overall situation and support the decisions of the EAC and the review opinions of the CSNS.
N.B. This opinion article was published by Macao Daily News, Macao’s top selling Chinese-language newspaper, earlier this week. The English translation of the article was arranged and reviewed by the Post, courtesy of Macao Daily News.
