China lands probe on moon’s far side in global first

BEIJING – A Chinese lunar rover landed on the far side of the moon yesterday, in a global first that boosts the nation’s ambitions to become a space superpower.The Chang’e-4 probe touched down and sent a photo of the so-called “dark side” of the moon to the Queqiao satellite, which will relay communications to controllers on Earth, the national space agency said on its website.Beijing is pouring billions of yuan into its space programme, with hopes of having a crewed space station by

January 4, 2019 | BY admin

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Gaming operators reduce plastic footprint, ditching straws

Gaming operators such as Sands China and MGM have pulled the last straw as part of their effort to reduce their plastic footprint.MGM announced last September that it had started phasing out single-use plastic straws at its restaurants in the previous month and would stop altogether using single-use plastics such as straws, cups, take-away containers and cutlery this year.Sands China said in a statement earlier this week that it has “discontinued” its use of plastic straws at all its

January 4, 2019 | BY admin

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MJC pledges to invest up to 4.5 billion patacas

The Macau Jockey Club (MJC) has promised to spend between 3.5 billion and 4.5 billion patacas on revamping its racetrack in Taipa, lawmakers were told yesterday. Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) Director Paulo Martins Chan and MJC Executive Director-cum-CEO Thomas Li Chu-kwan yesterday briefed the Legislative Assembly’s Follow-up Committee for Land and Public Concession Affairs about the racetrack’s development plans. Chan and legislator Ella Lei Cheng separately talked

January 4, 2019 | BY admin

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Cop fires warning shot during brawl over smoking in no-smoking area

A policeman fired a warning shot last night outside Galaxy Macau’s Diamond Lobby during a brawl over smoking in a non-smoking area, a Public Security Police (PSP) statement said early this morning.A video that has been circulating online shows four to five people speaking Putonghua in a clash with the policeman. Several of the hotel’s security guards were there but didn’t manage to stop the brawl, and even after a gunshot was heard, the pushing and shoving continued.A PSP statement

January 4, 2019 | BY admin

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Police nab duo for stealing from 6 restaurant guests

The Judiciary Police (PJ) arrested two men from the mainland on Wednesday for stealing valuables from six restaurant guests since last month, PJ spokesman Ho Chan Nam said during a special press conference yesterday.Ho identified the two suspects as a 52-year-old wall-and-floor tiler surnamed Mo and a 53-year-old farmer surnamed Xie.The six victims separately reported to the police between December 12 and Tuesday this week that their valuables had been stolen when they were having lunch or

January 4, 2019 | BY admin

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Airport logs record 8.2 million passengers in 2018

Macau’s airport handled a record 8.26 million passengers last year, a 15 percent growth year-on-year, its operator announced yesterday.According to a statement by the government majority-owned Macau International Airport Company (CAM), the number of aircraft movements (touchdowns and takeoffs) rose 12 percent to 65,000 last year.The statement pointed out that last year 27 airlines connected Macau with 51 destinations in mainland China and Taiwan as well as several foreign countries in Asia,

January 4, 2019 | BY admin

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Govt to build interim fire station in Ilha Verde

The government will first build a temporary fire station in Ilha Verde to cope with the ongoing urban development of the densely populated neighbourhood in the short term, according to a statement by the Lands, Public Works and Transport Bureau (DSSOPT) yesterday.In the long term, the government will construct a permanent one on a plot that will be made available by an updated version of the urban development plan for the district in the future, according to the statement.The bureau unsealed

January 4, 2019 | BY admin

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HK man ‘suffering from depression’ sets 5 bins on fire at delta bridge checkpoint: police

The Judiciary Police (PJ) arrested a man from Hong Kong on Wednesday for setting five rubbish bins on fire at the Macau checkpoint building and nearby bus stop of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (HZMB), PJ spokesman Ho Chan Nam said during a special press conference yesterday.The suspect admitted to having set the rubbish bins on fire but did not reveal his motive, merely saying that he was suffering from depression, according to Ho.Ho identified the suspect as a 33-year-old real-estate

January 4, 2019 | BY admin

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Xi says nation ‘must be, will be reunified’

BEIJING – President Xi Jinping yesterday said that China must be and will be reunified, as he addressed a gathering in Beijing to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Chinese mainland’s Message to Compatriots in Taiwan.“It is a historical conclusion drawn over the 70 years of the development of cross-Strait relations, and a must for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation in the new era,” said Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and

January 3, 2019 | BY admin

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Tourist arrivals rise 16 pct over New Year holiday

Macau recorded 528,369 tourist arrivals between last Saturday and New Year’s Day, according to immigration statistics released through the Macau Government Information Bureau (GCS) yesterday. Mainland China’s New Year holiday period ran from Sunday to New Year’s Day. According to the data, Macau’s eight border checkpoints recorded 2.2 million exits and entries during the four-day period, 1.6 million of which passed through the Barrier Gate checkpoint, or nearly three-quarters of

January 3, 2019 | BY admin

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Casino receipts rise 14 pct in 2018

Macau’s gross gaming receipts (GGRs) rose 14 percent year-on-year to 302.8 billion patacas last year, but still remained considerably lower than 2013’s record 360.7 billion patacas, according to data released by the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) on New Year’s Day. Last year’s 302.8 billion patacas were the highest GGRs since 2014, which stood at 351.5 billion patacas. Last month’s GGRs rose 16.6 percent year-on-year and 5.9 percent month-on-month to 26.4

January 3, 2019 | BY admin

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Robber falsely claims to be deception victim: police

Local police announced yesterday another wolf-in-sheep’s-clothing case.A man from the mainland was arrested in the early hours of Tuesday –New Year’s Day – for robbing a male compatriot and making a false accusation of a crime, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Ho Chan Nam said during a special press conference yesterday.Ho identified the suspect as a 29-year-old surnamed Gan.Cash seized in the false robbery case is displayed in a pressroom of the Judiciary Police (PJ) headquarters in

January 3, 2019 | BY admin

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Woman cheated in blessing scam promising casino winnings

A female gambler from the mainland was deceived by a male compatriot in a blessing scam in November last year, the Judiciary Police (PJ) announced in a special press conference yesterday.The suspect was arrested on Monday – New Year’s Eve, according to the police.PJ spokesman Ho Chan Nam identified the suspect as a 49-year-old unemployed man surnamed Chen.Judiciary Police (PJ) officers escort the hooded fraud suspect to a PJ vechicle outside the PJ headquarteres in Zape yesterday.

January 3, 2019 | BY admin

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Police suspect arson by HK man at delta bridge checkpoint

The Judiciary Police (PJ) said yesterday that small fires that broke out in four different areas at the Macau checkpoint building and cross-border bus stop for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (HZMB) were suspicious and would be investigated as suspected arson cases.The Judiciary Police said in a statement in the late afternoon that the Fire Services Bureau (CB) notified them at 2 p.m. yesterday of four suspicious fires at the checkpoint, officially known as “Macau Port”.According to the

January 3, 2019 | BY admin

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