Macau, China, March 20, 2026 (Lusa) – Macau's secretary for Administration and Justice said on Friday that strengthening national security in the territory was also a means of protecting "Chinese culture."
"To destroy a country, it is not only necessary to use military or online means, but it is also possible to resort to a process of cultural intervention or elimination," stated Wong Sio Chak, a day after the legislative assembly approved a new law to reinforce the Committee for the Defence of State Security, created in 2018 to support the head of government in decision-making regarding China's national security.
According to Wong, the "destruction of culture can be something less visible," and the cultural and educational authorities of the Chinese semi-autonomous city play an "important defensive role" in state security and the protection of "Chinese culture."
The secretary is also the spokesperson for Macau's executive council, which today presented the administrative regulation for the secretariat, which will provide technical, administrative, and logistical support for the new committee.
The body will now assess national security risks across education, culture, and the economy, in addition to its political functions – such as assessing the qualifications, suitability, and "patriotism" of individuals running for positions of power in Macau.
In addition to the chief executive, government secretaries, and police and security heads, the committee also includes the president of the Cultural Institute and the Director of the Education and Youth Development Bureau, specifically to safeguard state security in education and culture, Wong pointed out.
China's new Ethnic Unity Law, approved in March 2026, extends to Macau and Hong Kong and focuses on promoting national identity, security, and Mandarin teaching.
The legislation mentions Macau and Hong Kong and indicates that the two regions will be supported in teaching Chinese history and culture, while simultaneously helping to preserve national security.
The Macau Executive's programme for 2026 provides for the creation, by the end of the year, of a Working Group for the Coordination of Patriotic Education for Youth. The government's Action Lines also include, within the scope of the so-called "general plan for national security education", the revision of textbooks and other teaching materials for primary and secondary education by the third quarter of 2027.
In 2022, the secretary for security of Macau at that time, Wong Sio Chak, stated that education on state security would be extended to non-Chinese students.
The 2021 census indicates more than 2,200 people born in Portugal living in Macau. The latest estimate provided to Lusa by the Consulate General of Portugal pointed to approximately 155,000 Portuguese passport holders among the residents of Macau and Hong Kong.
NCM/RYOL // ADB.
Lusa
