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An Editorial by John T. Chui, San Francisco, CA – April 25, 2008.
Furthermore, it is ludicrous to have 3 Macau organizations. Lusitano members all belong to UMA. They ought to merge. Casa de Macau dominates all cultural activities, with one super self-promoting individual trying to be everyone and everything at the same time, from the Gastronomy Society to the Miss Encontro Beauty Pageant to the Patua. There is little room for personal agendas in non-profits. We need to think about WE the community. We live in America, let the people rule I say. I'm sick and tired of apathy. Hooray to "Sunny". Kudos for speaking out.---o0o--- An Editorial by Sunny Desouza, Miami, Florida – 4-17-08 Firstly I must congratulate you on a very fine website. A site which is read by hundreds of thousands of people throughout the year from around the world deserves my and other people's praises. Your website is amongst my favorites and I use it as a reference guide on Filo-Mac matters. I now reside in Florida, but I have spent a large part of my life in Canada. I have many friends and some distant relatives in California where I am kept informed of the activities of the 3 clubs and related matters. Mr. Editor, I want to express my opinion that I wholeheartedly agree with all your editorials. The Macao Cultural Center (MCC) has no business operating in their present capacity as a private self serving group. It should open up immediately for membership or risk facing legal action from any disgruntled member of your macanese community as the money from the government of Macao was and is intended not for use by the members of the 3 clubs, but for the use of the entire community. In my opinion, 2 of the clubs, Casa di Macao and Lusitano California ought to fold and let UMA run the entire show. UMA Inc is almost 60 years old and its membership is somewhere in the 1500 range. I am told that Casa di Macao, an insignificant minute midget in the world of macanese matters, is only comprised mainly by members of two macao families-the rest being mahjong player regulars. Lusitano of California directors are in no way as experienced as their UMA counterparts and are far below in stature both socially and economically. Thus, there is in my mind no doubt that in an open elections with the entire community voting, many in the current group of 9 in the MCC would have very little chance of being elected. It is a sham and an insult to the entire macanese community by allowing the MCC to have no members. Apart from being immoral this exclusion of membership for the benefit of some and to protect vested interests could also very well be illegal. ---o0o---
The Correct Beneficiaries of the US$2,000,000 Grant By Horatio F. Ozorio, April 11, 2008 In the total absence of any new information regarding the desirability of a merger of the three Macanese clubs into the Macau Cultural Center (MCC) to form one single organization to pursue the beneficial activities of the Macanese community in California, it would seem that the clubs are stalemated and continue to be unable to arrive at a consensus in the matter. In a few days it will be the ninth anniversary of the joint petition by the three Macanese clubs to His Excellency the then Governor of Macau for funds to establish a joint-use clubhouse. If indeed the clubs are stalemated, it might be helpful and clarifying to review anew the letter from the Fundação Para a Cooperacão e o Desenvolvimento de Macau (FCDM) announcing the grant of US$2,000,000 for that purpose. The first paragraph of the grant letter from the Fundação was at best unclear. Translated from the Portuguese, it read: By this means and in relation to the request for a subsidy solicited in the letter dated April 24, 1999, addressed to His Excellency the Governor of Macau, for the acquisition of espaço [space] for the three Casas UMA (União Macaense Americana), Club Lusitano de California and Casa de Macau USA, destined for the installation of the future sede [clubhouse] of the Centro Cultural de Macau in California, we inform your Excellencies of the following: Taken in context with the subsequent paragraphs of the grant letter, the first paragraph really is just descriptive of the petition to the then Governor of Macau The paragraph did not bequeath rights to the funds to anyone. The second paragraph of the letter read, translated: The Conselho de Administração of this Fundação in its meeting of the current month [17th September, 1999] approved the grant of a subsidy in the amount of USD2,000,000.00 (Two million American dollars). Through the good offices of the Governor, the Fundação para a Cooperação e o Desenvolvimento de Macau came forward and approved a grant of US$2,000,000 WITHOUT, HOWEVER, STATING TO WHOM THE FUNDS WERE GRANTED. That subsequently they named the three clubs to receive the US$2,000,000 in the eventual transfer of the funds did not confer on the clubs ownership of the funds remitted. After all, some party had to be named the transferee. The third paragraph of the letter read, translated: This support is destined not only for the acquisition of espaço [space] for the installation of “Centro Cultural de Macau” and its furnishing but also for a establishment of a “Trust Fund” whose income suporiar [not in the dictionary] as despesas increntes [not in the dictionary] in the maintenance of the Centro Cultural and of its activities. In describing the purpose of the funds, the Fundação meaningfully chose to use the words “This support” instead of “This grant.” Too, the heading of the grant letter, “Financial Support for Centro Cultural de Macau in California, USA” said support for the Centro Cultural de Macau, not support for the clubs. Significantly, in his acknowledgment to the Fundação, the then President of UMA said, “I am writing to thank you for your letter informing us of the decision of the Board of Directors of FCDM to grant the Macaenses of California USA [emphasis added] the sum of USD $2,000,000 for the purchase and maintenance of premises to serve as a Macau Cultural Center.” The fourth paragraph of the letter read, translated: The property and the TRUST FUND are to be registered in the name of the three “Casas” UMA (União Macaense Americana), Club Lusitano de California and Casa de Macau USA. What does “registered” mean? If it was the Fundação’s intention that the three clubs be vested with the funds what was the need to stipulate that the funds be “registered” in their name? The Fundação meant to show it was their intention that the clubs act as agents for Centro Cultural in the registration process. Moreover, at the time the grant letter was written the MCC was not yet in existence. Thus, the clubs in being made temporary custodians of the funds were clearly not the donees. As though the Fundação saw itself continuing to be the constructive owner of the funds, it preemptively exercised its right to stipulate the manner of disposition of the property should all the clubs ever become defunct. In the latter event the liquidated value of the property was to be escheated to a yet to be identified fundaçao in Portugal. The terms and conditions stipulated in the Grant Letter make it seem clear that in the mind of the Fundação the clubs were indeed the custodians of the funds and the property, not the owners. So it is entirely fanciful to say that each club is the outright owner of one-third of the grant funds and as well that each possesses one-third of the voting rights. Who owned the MCC was even a question raised at the annual general meeting of UMA a year or two ago. Whose name now appears on the title deed to the MCC and is it in fact the rightful name? At any rate, the arbitrary interpretation and claim of one-third ownership by each club represents a major stumbling block standing in the way of merging the three clubs into one entity with one Board of Directors (instead of the current four, which only contributes to further argument among them). Once the misapprehension of the role of the three clubs is out of the way merger talks should be able to proceed apace without the parties feeling unfairly or unjustifiably dispossessed, and as well the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws revised to correctly reflect the relationship of all parties to the transaction. Before many more of the elderly members of the Macanese community are denied the enjoyment of the $2,000,000 by their passing, the clubs need to regularize as soon as possible the status of the MCC as an entity (a) which owns the property, (b) which is governed by a Board of Directors elected by and responsible to dues-paying members of the Macau Cultural Center, and (c) which is open to membership to all in the Macanese community. ---o0o---
The Macau Cultural Center Directors By Horatio Ozorio, February 19, 2008. When questions were recently asked of Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney about his Mormon beliefs, he answered, promptly and eloquently, in an address to the American nation. When Pope Benedict XVI was asked to explain the speech he recently made to an academic audience at the University of Regensburg, Germany, which so upset the Muslim world, he did, promptly and with great humility. When Victoria Cruises Corporation was asked about the dangerous condition attending the boarding of one of its vessels by the Lusitano Club group headed on a tour of the Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze River, it answered, promptly and solicitously. And that’s the way of responsible management. They respond promptly. They owe their constituents an answer whenever faced with enquiry into their policies and practices. It matters not whether they are at the helm of a political, corporate, religious, military, or any other type of organization. They hold themselves accountable. Apparently not so with the directors of the Macau Cultural Center (MCC). In an editorial in this website dated October 25, 2007, questions were posed touching upon issues of management and leadership on their part. That was almost four months ago. To date no response has been received, and seemingly there is no reason to suppose any will be forthcoming. So what is the Macanese community to think of these so-called directors? One can only speculate. Do they really believe they are accountable to no one? Hardly. They can’t be that naïve. Are they relying on the well-known apathy of the Macanese community to escape from having to answer? That’s possible, and disappointing if it is true. Don’t the provisions of the California Corporation Code under which the MCC was chartered impose on them fiduciary responsibility to perform in a manner they believe to be in the best interests of the MCC? They do, but we have had enough of litigious shenanigans in the past to want to go in that direction. Or could it be they are unable to answer - with any degree of credibility or intelligence that is? That’s probably the case. No one relishes publicly confessing their incompetence. According to the Winter 2007 issue of the UMA News Bulletin, the MCC President reported at the club’s annual general meeting that renovations “have not yet commenced,” and that “it is hoped” that the City of Fremont will give final approval to all construction plans “by the end of this year.” Which year? He might just as well have reported that he had nothing to say! The Macanese clubs, which appointed these directors, would do well to remove them and replace them with people who have the required qualifications for the job. ASAP! ---o0o---
Above and Beyond the Call of Duty By Horatio Ozorio, December 17, 2007
To Fatima and Robert from Doris da Silva: Re the Encontro 2007 trip to Macau, I am listing the attentive and gracious services we received from Maria Roliz of Lusitano, who tirelessly worked to see that her people were taken care of at the Beverly Plaza Hotel where she stayed with us. She never questioned the fact that we were UMA members, she just included everyone in whatever was planned. These are the things Maria Roliz, President of Lusitano, did for her members and for us. *We arrived around midnight Sunday, November 25. Maria and her helpers were there in the lobby to greet us, clear up the confusion we encountered at the check-in desk, and gave us the keys to our room, our badges and our breakfast coupons and told us the time and place for breakfast. *Lusitano members received a daily schedule detailing time, place, venue, activity, type of dress and tours planned for each day. *At the request of her members, she arranged a tour of Macau on Wednesday. Since it was booked up, we asked if she could arrange another tour for Friday. She arranged another tour for the rest of us for Friday, while another tour took off for Hongkong. *A shopping tour to Zhuhai, China, on Thursday, was a whole day affair! Bonnie Braga [Braga Travel Consulting] and Maria checked all passports, gave instructions, divided us into groups, ABC, with leaders keeping each group together. The schedule showed time to meet, departure time, lunch time, shopping time and return time. *When we returned from the Closing Ceremony Dinner at the Venetian, Bonnie Braga and Maria Roliz were in the Beverly Plaza lobby to check each members flight, give us color-coded tags for our luggage according to our group departures, and made sure our flight tickets were in order. Bonnie Braga and Maria were there in the early morning to check our passports, plane tickets and escorted us by bus to the ferry terminal, where Bonnie collected our passports for a group clearance through customs, made sure our color-coded bags were grouped together for retrieval on the HK side and gave us last minute instructions. Maria had not slept all night! *Every day Maria posted the latest schedule on the board, added, deleted and updated the daily events and kept a reminder of all that we had to do. She was available for questions at all times, and answered everyone with politeness, patience and a ready smile. We are very impressed with Maria’a dedication to her members and can’t thank her enough for including us in all the tours she planned. We are wondering if UMA had anything going on for its members aside from what was originally planned by the Encontro people. If they did, sadly we were not included in it. Even before anyone put one step on board the plane for Macau, Maria Roliz was knee-deep in tackling the logistics of the side tours to China and Vietnam that preceded Macau, and the finale in Hong Kong, totalling 21 days in the Far East. In those add-ons, Maria handled all the requirements relative to itineraries, sign-ups, passports, visas, plane tickets, program updates, hotel accommodations, trip costs, travel insurance, trip rosters, etc., etc., as well as travel problems personal to some of the travelers. A performance truly deserving of an Oscar! ---o0o---
Why? Why? Why!!! An editorial by Horatio Ozorio, Eduardo Collaço and Nuno Prata da Cruz – October 25, 2007 Note: Responses to this editorial, if any, are appended below - Ed. The time is long past when the Macanese community was within its rights to demand answers from the group of the nine people who were arbitrarily appointed by the three Macanese social clubs, Casa de Macau USA, Lusitano Club of California, and UMA, to be directors of the Macau Cultural Center (MCC). Each of them it turned out has a conflict of interest - between loyalty to the social clubs to which they belonged and loyalty to the MCC. That undoubtedly is one of the reasons behind the visceral disagreements among them. Here are some of the questions we continue to ask: Why is it that no one from the community had a vote in electing the nine directors of the MCC, the majority of them non-professionals? Why were the directors of the MCC chosen through undemocratic means, which at times bordered on nepotism? Why is it that the directors of the MCC do not seem to feel they need to be accountable to the Macanese community, and on what grounds did one of the directors of the MCC allegedly say, publicly, that the board can and will do as it pleases? Why have we still not been told who owns the MCC despite doubts in this respect and despite such a question being raised at the annual general meeting of one of the clubs? Why is it that the Macanese community continues to be kept in the dark about what is happening with the MCC, and that no information has been forthcoming from the officers and directors about its affairs? Why is it that meetings of the officers and directors of the MCC are closed to the community, and minutes thereof kept secret? Why are the bylaws of the MCC unavailable to the community, if they have even been written? Why does the MCC continue the absurdity of having no members, in defiance of the express purpose of the Macau government that the MCC was for the benefit and use of the Macanese community? Why is it that skyscrapers, roads, and bridges have been built literally overnight in Macau, Shanghai and Hong Kong, but the Macanese community in California is still waiting with bated breath after years for an existing building to be readied as its cultural center? There are many more ancillary questions that can and need to be asked, but the above are sufficient to show that the MCC is so far just a colossal farce. Incidentally, not that long ago the frustration of the nine directors in their own inefficiency was such that the immediate sale of the building was said to have been a topic of discussion at one of their secret meetings. Frankly, bailing out of the lousy deal that the MCC turned out to be would not seem to be a bad idea. By now, despite everything, the building could probably be sold for a capital gain. It its place the Macanese community should follow the example of the Casas in Vancouver even if the reason for it is different, i.e. buy two smaller buildings, and locate them closer to the centers where the Macanese population live. The latter plan was originally advocated at the time the MCC was purchased by many who felt that it was too far away for most members of the community, a roundtrip of 150 miles on average, for it to be put to regular and frequent use. The prospect that the MCC could turn out to be a white elephant, sadly, is not unrealistic. The present apathy of the Macanese community about what happens to the MCC seems to confirm that they would not be terribly interested even if the MCC finally came into operation. If the two-cultural centers idea is adopted, let us not make the same mistakes that attended the disorganized and poorly administrated MCC that is amply illustrated in the questions we pose above. We invite a response to this website editorial from the MCC nine, and we welcome comments by the Macanese community. Response by John Monteiro 10-28-07 I refer to the editiorial dated October 25, 2007 by Horatio Ozorio, Eduardo Collaco, and Nuno Prata da Cruz. The authors asked for feedback from the Macanese community, so I would like to put in my point of view. I can fully understand Horatio, Eduardo, and Nuno’s frustrations about the position of the MCC. I have no doubt that many others share their views. However, I believe they, and the FM community should give the MCC directors some understanding and support in the Board’s efforts to complete a FM community clubhouse we can all be proud of. Their task is far more difficult than most people can imagine. They have huge challenges to overcome in this thankless project. One thing is for sure, whatever the Board does, they will receive little thanks, and be faced with the wrath of criticism from the community. I agree with them that the MCC board should give everyone regular updates, but I disagree that Board should be required to keep the entire community informed of everything that takes place at their meetings. The simple reason for this is because everyone has their own opinion of what should be done. This will result in total bureaucracy and it will bog down progress. As an example: The YEARS of delay in buying a clubhouse has proved extremely costly. Our money was badly invested, and we lost our buying power as a result of this. More so, had we moved forward at that time, we would have owned property that must have doubled in value. What caused these delays? Many many reasons, but the bottom line is because we had 3 FM clubs that could not get along, in-fighting, and everyone had to be consulted. As a result, we took one step forward and two steps backwards. There are genuine reasons for the delays, and the Board needs our support, and not be overly criticized. We need to make decisions, and move forward. So we need to give the Board the power to make the best decisions they can, and complete this project. We should not dwell in past decisions whether they were right decisions or not. The fact is, we have bought this building, let’s now move forward. Time is NOT on our side. If our community continues to fight amongst ourselves, many will be not be around to witness a united FM community with a MCC clubhouse they can enjoy. Our community is fast shrinking, we need to ban together now and support each other. John Monteiro.
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Are We on Our Way? By Horatio Ozorio, April 11, 2007. UMA is to be congratulated for having elected Mrs. Raquel Remedios as its 2007-2008 State Board President, and she in turn is to be commended for “stepping up to the plate.” Here is someone who can justifiably claim to be burned out, like so many other veteran members have done, but did not. A successful businesswoman in her own right, hers is a record of years of contributing to the wellness of the Macanese community. It is a pleasure to read what she has written so far in the UMA News Bulletin since the inception of her administration, both from the standpoint of sensibility and her communication skills. She may well turn out to be the person who pulls up the socks of a moribund community. Pity she does not also occupy the office of President of the Macau Cultural Center, but having her as one of its Directors the community can well expect to see her fine hand in getting its house in order. That having been said, Mrs. Remedios’ comments in a discussion currently under way in the UMA Bulletin, among those reported by several other commentators, are the only ones right on point. The topic of discussion is Consolidation of the Three Northern California Chapters, into one single chapter. Mrs. Remedios perspicaciously points out that “It may be a bit late in the day to consider any major structural changes in UMA. We should be concentrating our efforts in trying to consolidate the 3 clubs: UMA, Lusitano and Casa de Macau into the Macau Cultural Center.” Terrific! She is in the Twenty-first Century while the others are still floundering in the Twentieth. As this website has intimated in previous editorials, as long as the three Macanese clubs remain entities in their original incarnation, and with their pathetic record of interclub and intraclub squabbling, there is not a chance that the Macau Cultural Center can be the successful undertaking it can and should be. There will always be conflicts of interest, and therefore further disputatiousness, among and between the four Boards of Directors. As one united club, the Macau Cultural Center could still have the former clubs and chapters operating as before but as activity groups based on geographic convenience. Such groups need not have Boards of Directors or even corporate officers. Simple work leaders will do. Thus, with only one Board of Directors, that of the Macau Cultural Center, all issues could and should be dealt with by motion, seconded, discussed and voted on, and that would put an end to the historical habit of endless and disgraceful squabbling. By the way, UMA is also to be congratulated for organizing the Consolidation discussion under the leadership of a Past President, Jim Silva. It has been the habit of UMA to throw raw data on the floor for debate at its annual general meeting, with incredible scenes of disagreement and disagreeableness. When this writer was President of the Contra Costa Chapter in the mid 1990s, it was his suggestion to the State Board that an advisory group of Past Presidents and/or ad hoc committees be created to research and deal with issues, after which their findings submitted at the annual general meeting for adoption or rejection, and if necessary the membership surveyed for ratification. How much more would have been accomplished at its annual general meetings had that suggestion been implemented will never be known. Be that as it may, there now seems to be light at the end of the tunnel. ---o0o---
Organizational Structure of Macau Cultural Center This website was recently able to obtain a copy of the bylaws of the Macau Cultural Center (MCC). A quick perusal thereof raised two immediate questions. The first question was, what genius decided that “This corporation shall have no members.” That’s what Article IV on Membership says. No members? A reading of a very small section of the California Corporation Code, under which the MCC was chartered, reveals that the word “member” appears 19 times. So, the MCC existentially is a corporation with just nine directors, initially appointed at the time of formation of the corporation, and no members. Pretty exclusive, what? [See addendum below] The bylaws go on to say in Article V that the Board of Directors shall consist of “three (3) Directors respectively from each of Casa De Macau USA, Inc., Lusitano Club of California, Inc., and UMA, Inc.” They also say these Directors “shall be nominated and elected.” Nominated and elected by whom? They have no members, remember? By persons outside of the Macau Cultural Center! And these outsiders have been quarreling with each other for years!! Currently, they talk about the three clubs uniting, but that too is a quarrel that defies solution. It defies solution because traditionally the Macanese are guided not by what is good and best for the community but by personal agendas. By that yardstick expect that the older generation will be rotting and moldering in their graves before unity takes place, if it ever takes place. Hopefully the younger generation will have developed an interest in their tradition and culture by then and taken over in more enlightened fashion. So, anyone desiring to enter and use the MCC would theoretically be a trespasser unless he or she obtained prior permission to do so, each time. Permission from whom? And while in the Center how would such a person be held accountable? The second question was, why was the Macau Cultural Center organized as a Nonprofit Public Benefit Corporation which can engage only in activities for any public or charitable purposes, whereas being organized as a Nonprofit Mutual Benefit Corporation enables them to engage in activity for any lawful purpose? That seems to have potential for possible problems. How is “Public Benefit”defined? The Macanese Clubs are private clubs. They are organized as Nonprofit Mutual Benefit Corporations. Could their activities ever be in conflict with those permitted to the Macau Cultural Center? None of these problems would have arisen if the three Macanese clubs had united as one single entity to form the Macau Cultural Center. All members of the individual clubs would have ipso facto become members of the MCC, while any non-club member of the Macanese community could apply for membership. Furthermore, all could and should be assessed an annual membership fee thereby generating self-sustaining revenue for cultural activities. Finally, so structured, the MCC would be a democratically run institution, especially if its bylaws called for election of officers and directors by the members instead by the directors. That would permit members of the younger generation to throw their hat in the ring to run for office. Young blood at last?! [Addendum 4/14/07 - And since there shall be no members, the directors are not members either!] ---o0o---
He was a Grand Old Man By Horatio Ozorio, April 3, 2007
The Macanese community
lost one of its most beloved members with the passing of Rigoberto Paulo
José Collaço Roliz on March 10, 2007. Fondly known as Rigo by everyone,
he was held in the highest esteem by his colleagues as was attested to
by the overflow crowd that said goodbye to their dear friend at a
Memorial Service held for him on March 31 at St. Gabriel’s Catholic
Church in San Francisco.
Rigo was aptly described as a “people person.” He had time for any and every one. Bearing this out, Rigo, a widely traveled man, described himself best when he said, “I go to see faces, not places.” Seemingly paradoxically, this gentle loving soul was an amateur featherweight boxing champion in his younger days, winning most of his fights by a knockout. This writer recalls seeing him bobbing and weaving in the ring with footwork worthy of the great Ali. He transcribed the latter dexterity into a terpsichorean deftness that delighted the ladies on the dance floor with whom he jitterbugged, waltzed or tangoed. An avid sportsman, he excelled at lawn bowls, soccer, and softball. As a staunch member of the Club de Recreio, the Lusitano Clubs in Hong Kong, Shanghai and California, and União Macaense Americana (UMA), Rigo was a steadying and motivating force in their activities and affairs. It will be strange for members of the Macanese community not to see his smiling face at their get-togethers. They will for sure miss this affable congenial man like no other. Rest in peace, Rigo. (Rigo is the father of Maria Roliz, President of Lusitano Club of California, Director of Macau Cultural Center, Concelho Geral of Conselho das Comunidades Macaenses for Lusitano Club of California. – Ed.)
Still in a Myopic Quagmire! By Horatio Ozorio, March 16, 2007. A little over three years ago this website editorialized that the managements of the three Macanese clubs in the San Francisco Bay Area were myopic, i.e. shortsighted. Despite being almost identical in their objectives and activities, the clubs persisted in remaining separate entities rather than sensibly uniting to form one club. They did, however, finally reach belated agreement, after much squabbling, on how to use the $2 million they received from the Macau government years ago and bought a joint-use clubhouse. Were the executives of the clubs insulted at being accused of a deficiency of foresight? Apparently not. They did not defend their record. They did not even deign to reply. They blissfully continued to remain separate clubs in disregard of the fact that the Macanese community as such was in danger of dissolving and evolving into vanilla American citizens. However, we like to think they were prodded by the editorials in this website and have of late started speaking, just speaking, about uniting. What is holding up unity even though a joint-use clubhouse, the Macau Cultural Center, has been purchased? A clue comes out of the latest annual general meeting of the largest of the three clubs. The minutes of that meeting contains the sentence, “He also posed the problem of ‘what happens to the money’ when we consolidate the three clubs as the three clubs have different amounts of money.” The question was posed by a director of one of the chapters. In past years, the three clubs received annual subsidies from the Macau government in identical amounts without regard to the number of members in each club. There was no specification how the money was to be used. In fact the money was spent or preserved according to the discretion of the respective management of each club. So now the amounts remaining in the treasury of each club are disproportionate relative to the size of their memberships. Compounding this situation is a variety of opinions on “what happens to the money,” including spending it, on non-cultural events if necessary, in order to bring the level of the equity in each treasury into proportion to the number of members in each club, with the residual amount to be handed over the Macau Cultural Center. This website had earlier suggested that the clubs turn over their unallocated funds to the individual members personally, but that suggestion was not properly thought out. That surely would have caused an intra-club fight, with the members of longest standing probably demanding a greater share of those funds. We now are of the opinion the funds in the treasuries of the three clubs should be turned over in their entirety to the Macau Cultural Center. It is not difficult to imagine, and in fact it is obvious, that the subsidies from Macau were motivational in nature, intended to help the clubs out in their cultural activities. It is hardly likely that the subsidies were meant to be pocket money for the individual members to be spent as they desired for their personal enjoyment. With very short notice to the community, the Portuguese Studies Program of the University of California in Berkeley and the Macau Arts Culture and Heritage Institute will, on March 21, 2007, present the International Institute of Macau on “Macau’s Identity – Crossroads, Challenges and Opportunities.” One segment of the conference will feature a roundtable discussion by the “Casas leaders in California.” Even though these panelists will be the same “leaders” who have been around for years and have hardly had anything new to say, it should be an interesting discussion given that they will, this once, have a public audience. Amongst those sitting in on the roundtable discussion will be the distinguished visitors from Macau. Hopefully the “Casas leaders” will discuss “what happens to the money,” AND COME AWAY WITH THE RIGHT DECISION, a decision that will enable their Boards of Directors to get the lead out of their …..feet. ---o0o---
Macanese Community “Leaders” – Boo! By Horatio Ozorio, August 12, 2006 The following are excerpts from editorials appearing in this website over the past years: Meaningful Elections – One More Time - 7/13/06 “… In January of 2004, in an editorial headed “Meaningful Elections” this website urged that strenuous efforts be made by the Macanese community to seek candidates for office from among its members who had professional qualifications; who have shown they are able to work with others realistically, with civility, and in good faith; and who honestly believe that their efforts would be in the best interests of the members of their club, as required of directors by the California Corporation Code. It also urged that candidates be provided with logistical support and funding in the election process in order to level the playing field for all candidates, to ensure more intelligent voting on the part of the electorate, to achieve greater voter turnout, and to stimulate greater interest by members in the business of their club” Wake up Call to the Macanese Community – 1/7/05 “… For another, and that is the thrust of this editorial, in the case of the largest club, its electoral system calls for executive officers of the club to be elected not directly by the membership but by members of its board of directors. The practical effect of this latter is, the same people run for office as directors year after year, who in turn elect and re-elect themselves as officers. One would imagine there isn’t a soul in the club who would not welcome new blood. “… It would be interesting to see what the outcome would be if the bylaws of the clubs uniformly call for election of the President, the Vice President, the Treasurer, and the Secretary by the general membership directly instead of by their directors. This would not guarantee the election of new blood, of course, but younger candidates at least for once would know they stood a chance of being elected if they really wanted the job, had fire in their belly, and campaigned hard enough. Almost for sure those who have had enough of the system in which directors elected their officers would lend their wholehearted support to any young candidates whom they identified as competent and who spelled out a platform that offered real hope for the survival of the Macanese community as such.” Meaningful Elections – 1/27/04 “… It is not inappropriate at this juncture then to remind all concerned of the call by A Diaspora Macaense na America for candidates for office to be carefully chosen for their ability, professional expertise, experience, and integrity; as well to ask again the questions posed by the Editor of the Lusitano Bulletin regarding poor attendance at the Annual General Meeting at which elections take place, membership disinterest in club business, and ignorance of the candidates, their qualifications and their platforms.” Lusitano Bulletin Editor Speaks Out – 12/26/03 “… He points out, using what are clearly rhetorical questions, the disinterest of the membership in club business, their lackadaisical attitude towards their candidates for office, their ignorance of the candidates’ qualifications and platform, and the entrenchment of the usual groups of persons running for office with few other choices on the ballot.” Dishearteningly, nothing has been done by club leaders about these suggestions for reform. They, most if not all of them, appear not to have discussed the suggestions among themselves nor have they presented them to the membership for its opinion or consideration. Perhaps they have not even bothered to read the editorials, given their pathetic tradition of conceitedly believing they know everything there is to know about leadership, of not accepting advice from anybody who would dare to offer it, and whom they contemptuously dismiss with epithets such as “know-it-all,” “show-off,” “messiah,” “pontificator,” and equine rear-end (can’t print the actual term used). Collectively, these so-called leaders have blithely proceeded irresponsibly, negligently, and in blissful dereliction of their corporate and fiduciary responsibilities. The apathy and arrogance of the Macanese community “leaders” has been breathtaking. Unfortunately, it doesn’t stop there. The apathy permeates the rank and file of the membership itself. Those members who seem to care about the fortunes of the Macanese community have simply confined themselves to deprecating the scandalous non-performance of their “leaders,” cursing their cultural bad luck to have such types at the helm of their ship of state, throwing up their hands, and turning around and going back to their mahjong games, poker games and lawn bowls. Reprehensibly, they have failed to hold their “leaders” accountable. What can be said about such apathetic members? In an axiomatic nutshell, they deserve the government they elected. In the meantime the community is in its umpteenth year of squabbling over what to do about its cultural center, about club unity, and about the survival of the Macanese community as such. If and when this website ever shuts down, it can be assumed, sadly, that yet another member of the community has thrown up his hands. Keep the website going? What for! ---o0o---
A Filomacau Takes on the U.S. Supreme Court? The Constitution of the United States basically spells out the rights of its citizens. Subsequent to its original enactment, amendments were added to it. A section of the 14th Amendment reads, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside.” Michael Colitti, son of Benita Remedios Colitti of Ventura, California, is of the opinion that current interpretation of this provision by US courts is flawed, with adverse consequences for American immigration policy. More specifically, he quarrels with the “Anchor Baby Rule,” which encourages illegal immigration by pregnant women in order to have their babies in this country. Such births automatically entitle the baby to American citizenship. The baby then becomes the anchor of the chain by which its family may receive benefits from social programs, and may themselves eventually become citizens of the United States. The cost to U.S. taxpayers is huge. Michael feels so strongly about this that he has formed a website, www.The14th.org, to remedy the interpretation flaw, and is prepared to go all the way up to the Supreme Court of the United States to do so. As mother Benita describes Michael’s efforts, “… it has taken tremendous dedication, time and effort to reach this point – and the most difficult mountains are yet to be climbed.” This website doffs its cap to Filomacau Michael Colitti for having the courage of his convictions and the intestinal fortitude to go all the way. ---o0o--- Meaningful Elections – One More Time By Horatio Ozorio, July 13, 2006 The Nominating Committee of the Greater East Bay Chapter of UMA, Inc. has just announced a slate of candidates to stand for election as officers and directors for the year 2007. The candidates are all holdovers from the recent past, and the recent past has not been impressive. For a chapter in sore need of revitalization, it would seem unrealistic to expect a winning combination to emerge from this slate, for the following reasons:
There is no reason then, it would appear, to suppose that the chapter would be in a position to get its act together any time soon, certainly not with the motley group that comprises the 2007 slate. In January of 2004, in an editorial headed “Meaningful Elections” this website urged that strenuous efforts be made by the Macanese community to seek candidates for office from among its members who had professional qualifications; who have shown they are able to work with others realistically, with civility, and in good faith; and who honestly believe that their efforts would be in the best interests of the members of their club, as required of directors by the California Corporation Code. It also urged that candidates be provided with logistical support and funding in the election process in order to level the playing field for all candidates, to ensure more intelligent voting on the part of the electorate, to achieve greater voter turnout, and to stimulate greater interest by members in the business of their club. The outcome? Management and membership yawned and that was the end of the matter, culminating in the 2007 slate of unprepossessing candidates described above. Is it too late to do anything about providing the membership with a greater number of candidates to choose from? No. The chapter can still organize an all-out campaign to publicize the fact that write-in candidates are allowed, welcome, and encouraged. Hopefully this suggestion will not be met with another yawn. ---o0o---
Vancouver, Put an End to It! By Horatio Ozorio, April 27, 2006 This website has obtained a copy of “AN OPEN LETTER TO THE MACANESE COMMUNITY IN VANCOUVER & ELSEWHERE” written by Mr. Luiz M. Souza, MBE AE, Editor – Boletim Macaense – Macau Cultural Association, to which he attached copies of letters written by Ms Laura Cordeiro, President (1994) & President-elect (1995), Macau Cultural Association, to two of its then members. In his open letter Mr. Souza complains that “Casa de Macau Club is again continuing in its attempts to discredit our Association worldwide…” while Ms Cordeiro responds in her letters to the procedural objections raised by the two members in connection with the November 20, 1994, Election Meeting of the Macau Cultural Association. To avoid the appearance of taking sides we are not publishing Mr. Souza’s open letter, but as members of the Macanese community “elsewhere” we accept the implied invitation to comment. At issue in the dispute were the rules governing the eligibility of new members in good standing to vote at the November 20 Election Meeting. Dissatisfaction with the ruling of Ms Cordeiro who presided over the meeting led to an eventual breakaway of a large contingent of dissident members to form a club of their own, and to 11 ensuing years of bitter community acrimony and hurling of verbal brickbats at each other by the two rival organizations. In the resulting stalemate the biggest casualty in the fray was the purchase of a clubhouse for the Macanese community in Western Canada with the funds so generously donated by the Macau government. Attempts to resolve the problem, including two separate efforts by officials from Macau, met with no success. Not having been there and not being privy to the minutiae of the dispute does not dissuade us from venturing a guess in retrospect that it was probably parliamentary failure and failure to enforce the club’s byelaws during the meeting that was the chief cause of the debacle in which the two organizations now find themselves. A ruling of the chair should have been sufficient to dispose of the matter. It was not, if there was any. Of course, the well-known disputatious tradition of the Macanese in such situations would not have allowed them to move on, and they didn’t. The solution to the problem seems simple enough. The two organizations should agree to beg, borrow, or hire an expert on social club bylaws and Robert’s Rules of Order from a prestigious club, let’s say the Rotary Club, present him or her with the evidence, and agree to abide by the decision he or she hands down. The vindicated club is awarded jurisdiction and custody over the funds from Macau while refusal to submit to this form of arbitration by either club automatically escheats the funds to the consenting club. The concurrence of the Macau government would of course be necessary for that to happen. The vanquished club, it is to be hoped, will place the best interests of the Macanese community above its pique and graciously join the winner to form one united club, while the winning club, it is also to be hoped, will be magnanimous in victory. The time is long past due for sensible heads to put an end to this wretched affair. ---o0o---
Respect for Each Other By Horatio Ozório, March 13, 2006 In an editorial dated March 10, 2006, José Rocha Dinis, Director, Jornal Tribuna de Macau, complimented Americans - Republicans and Democrats alike - for the respect they show their democratically elected Presidents, in office and out of office, even if those Presidents had not been candidates of their choice, and despite having said repellent things about them during presidential elections; and, as well, notwithstanding that Presidents, from John Kennedy onwards, were not free of embarrassing indiscretions or “gaffes” during their respective administra-tions. It was in the context of a country’s maximum leader deserving the respect and consideration of all citizens that Dinis wrote, sadly, that he saw persons of high level responsibility in Portuguese democratic circles committing the inelegance of not greeting the newly elected President of Portugal, Prof. Aníbal Cavaco Silva. On a different level, we Macanese Americans could well take note of such breaches of etiquette on our part, not so much in our dealings with persons of preeminence but in our personal relationships with each other. We have not learned the lessons of democratic generosity or courtesy from our American hosts despite having worked and lived in their midst for several decades. Not only do we fail to accord our Macanese colleagues their just due whenever they are deserving of it, but we often diminish each other’s accomplishments. It is an unfortunate flaw in our character as a community, and it was so noted long ago by J. P. Braga, a distinguished member of the Macanese community of the past in his writings of yesteryear. That trait of ours would seem to account for our inability as a community to work together for the common good. Perhaps we could learn from the words of Rodney King, a fellow American. Who was he? He was a local black man, poor and not particularly well educated, who took a severe beating at the hands of four white police officers, resulting in the race riots in South Central Los Angeles in 1992 when they were found not guilty of brutality. With unexpected maturity and uncommon magnanimity King said, after he had recovered from his wounds and at their trial, “Can we all get along?” Can we? ---o0o---
Jornal Tribuna de Macau Reviews 2005 - Excerpts 2005 O Ano em Revista Fevereiro 16 - As três associações macaenses sediadas na Califórnia iniciaram de forma auspiciosa o Ano Lunar do Galo, chegando a acordo para a criação de um Centro Cultural. Março 2 - A comunidade macaense radicada na Califórnia foi incentivada a participar num prémio literário criado pelo Instituto Camões, a atribuir durante o Congresso “A Vez e a Voz da Mulher em Portugal e na Diáspora”, que a Universidade de Berkeley acolhe em Abril. 5 - As três associações macaenses da Califórnia poderão fundir-se numa única entidade, admitem os seus dirigentes, que consideram a criação do Centro Cultural como um passo decisivo nesse sentido. Maio 3 - A Arquitectura de Macau foi o tema de uma palestra proferida em San Jose, Califórnia, por Gustavo da Roza, prestigiado arquitecto natural do território, que acedeu a um convite do IIM. 11 - Pereira Coutinho foi convidado pela diáspora macaense na América a representar a comunidade nas comemorações do Dia 10 de Junho na Califórnia. 18 - A direcção do Centro Cultural de Macau na Califórnia acordou em finalizar um processo de aquisição de um imóvel que funcionará como sede da nova instituição a abrirá caminho para a fusão das três associações macaenses. Junho 30 - “Esperamos que o Conselho das Comunidades Macaenses dê apoio às actividades da Diáspora um pouco mais rápido. Estamos aguardando as suas decisões”, salienta Henrique Manhão, da Casa de Macau USA. Julho 28 - Casas na Califórnia lançam Associação de Empresários Macaenses dos EUA. 29 - O Centro Cultural de Macau na Califórnia deverá ser inaugurado até Outubro e terá como sede um edifício histórico da cidade de Fremont. Agosto - Fiéis às tradições macaenses, dezenas de associados da Casa de Macau USA juntaram-se para assinalar a passagem do Dia de São João Baptista, historicamente celebrado como Dia de Macau. Outubro - José Manuel Rodrigues desvaloriza as anunciadas demissões no Conselho das Comunidades e assegura que as Casas de Macau em Vancouver e nos EUA não foram alvo de pressões para denunciarem os protocolos assinados com a ATFPM. “Foi apenas uma questão de opção”, garantiu o presidente da APIM ao JTM. - A Assembleia Geral do Conselho das Comunidades Macaenses vai votar o programa de actividades e o orçamento para 2006. Numa altura em que mais comunidades se preparam para constituir estruturas comerciais, à semelhança da Associação de Empresários Macaenses da Califórnia, o presidente do CCM apela ao “sentimento de unidade” entre as Casas de Macau. Novembro 5 - A agenda do Conselho das Comunidades Macaenses ficou marcada pela recepção do Chefe do Executivo, que reiterou a confiança no trabalho das Casas na diáspora. Os dirigentes macaenses reuniram com o director dos Serviços de Turismo para definir estratégias de colaboração futuras. Para Costa Antunes, as Casas têm um “papel único” na divulgação da imagem da RAEM. 6 - Considerando que a colaboração com as Casas de Macau tem sido um sucesso, o director dos Serviços de Turismo afirma que é necessário estudar formas de estreitar as relações de colaboração. No próximo mês a DST irá receber uma apresentação das Casas e das suas actividades para avaliar novos modelos de cooperação. 28 - A Fundação Macau viabilizou as obras de renovação e apetrechamento do edifício onde vai ficar instalado o Centro Cultural de Macau da Califórnia, revelou ao JTM o director-tesoureiro da Casa de Macau (USA). ---o0o---
Matriarch of a Very Portuguese Family Dies By Horácio Ozório - August 27, 2005 August 21, 2005, the sad word went out. Thália Maria Prata da Cruz had slipped away peacefully during the night and had gone to the Lord. It was not unexpected. Thália at 95 had been fading slowly, and with her passing was lost to the Macanese community a grand old lady and matriarch. But reporting that in this website is not meant to be an obituary. It is to salute a remarkable Macanese citizen. It was in a won ton house in Hong Kong that I first met Thália. My wife Yvonne and I had stopped in there ravenously hungry for a bite while waiting for the ferry to take us to Macau after the long flight from San Francisco. The occasion? It was Encontro das Comunidades Macaenses 1996. Thália was seated at a table with her husband of 65 years, Felisberto, and appeared to be sizing us up as we entered, probably wondering if we were Macanese. That was quickly settled and we struck up a conversation. It didn’t take long for me to realize that Thália was unusual. She was very Portuguese, something I had not noticed in other Macanese women whom I had known. For starters, she enlightened us that Encontro was not the proper word to describe the trip to Macau. Correctly speaking, according to her, it should be romagem, a word that does not appear in my 1997 Portuguese dictionary but does in my much older dictionary, so old it doesn’t even carry a date or a claim of copyright. At any rate, the meaning of romagem, she said, was pilgrimage. I liked the sound of that. Yes, indeed we were on a pilgrimage to Macau, the land of our forefathers. And with that she re-started my interest in the Portuguese language, for I had studied Portuguese at St. Luiz Gonzaga College as a refugee in Macau during World War II but had dropped it on returning to Hong Kong after the war. Thália lived her love for Lusofonia. Not coincidentally, all four of her children are married to Portuguese, Nuno to Maria João, a charming portuguesa from Alentejo, and daughters Manuela, Fernanda, and Mariazinha to Luis, Humberto and José respectively, all Macanese boys. Notice the names. Portuguese, all of them. Needless to say, they all speak Portuguese. Nuno and Mariazinha received some of their education in Portugal. Born and bred in Hong Kong where she lived the first 50 years of her life, Thália treasured her Portuguese citizenship, resisting any persuasion by others to change her political status to that of a British subject to which she was entitled by reason of having been born in Hong Kong, a British colony then. Thália was proud of her heritage. She loved being Portuguese. And she loved and was proud of her family. In 1956 when her husband semi-retired from his job in Hong Kong, she moved her entire family to Macau because she wanted her children to be more exposed to the Portuguese culture. A devout Catholic, whenever she prayed the rosary she did so in the Portuguese language. Her idea of recreation too was very Portuguese. She enjoyed listening to fado music, and during her lifetime traveled and vacationed in Portugal at least 20 times. In addition to keeping an apartment in Lisbon, Thália bought two annual timeshares in the Algarve for her travels. Following in her footsteps, her children have taken out mortgages for apartments purchased in Portugal for their future retirement. Commendably, all of her family are members and faithful supporters of the three San Francisco Bay Area Macanese Clubs and their events. It was at those events that I would visit with Thália, and had the opportunity to practice a little of my poor Portuguese. There can be no doubt that had there been more women like Thália in the Macanese community, it would have taken on a very different look today. Descanse em paz, Da.Thália Maria Prata da Cruz. ---o0o---
World Heritage Recognition – An Editorial By Harald Bruning, Macau Daily Post, July 16, 2005 Yes, we finally got it! World heritage recognition by the UNESCO is one of the greatest news that Macau has received since its return to China in 1999. Our cultural affairs officials, including Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Fernando Chui Sai On and Macau Cultural Affairs Bureau President Heidi Ho, deserve a hearty pat on the back for a job very well done. Congratulations! However, we must also express our sincere gratitude to China’s delegation to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee’s meeting in Durban for their successful bid, particularly Beijing’s Permanent UNESCO Delegate, Ambassador Zhang Bai. Well done Mr. Ambassador! Macau’s bid was successfully centred on its so-called “historic centre” that comprises two dozen monuments and eight squares on the peninsula in virtual walking distance. The “historic centre” represents Macau’s relatively peaceful Occidental and Oriental coexistence for nearly half a millennium. Macau’s tangible world heritage, which has now been officially recognized, is complemented by its intangible heritage, such as its special way of life, its Asian-Portuguese Creole – Patua – and, last but not least, its Euro-Asian “Macanese” cuisine. Hopefully, Macau’s intangible patrimony will also be recognized as world heritage before long. The new status, which will draw global attention, also means new obligations in terms of heritage preservation, cultivation and promotion. All this will require increased human resources and financial support. Gauging by a straw poll held by The Macau Post Daily yesterday, Macau residents are united in their joy, pride and satisfaction over the successful bid. “Great for business and great for our identity,” an elderly resident said, adding, “Macau hit the jackpot.” It will now be up to the Macau Government Tourist Office, the Macau Cultural Affairs Bureau and other public and private entities to find the most efficient way of promoting the world-heritage status worldwide. The Macau Post Daily will play its modest role in promoting our world-heritage by further strengthening its coverage of cultural events. Harald Bruning ---o0o---
Jorge Rangel on Indifferent Financial Support for the Diaspora Macaense By Horatio Ozorio - July 5, 2005
“Unfortunately the Motherland could not or did not learn how to take advantage of its resources, and he left, emigrated, and there went to others the efforts of his labors and his intelligence.” Whoever read this excellent article, Rangel said, would readily conclude that some of the biggest problems that afflicted the Macaense community at the dawning of the 20th Century remained with them until the entry of the new millennium. Using the pseudonym “Mario,” the then Father Costa Nunes, later Bishop of Macau, Patriarch of the East Indies and Cardinal Vice-Camerlengo of Santa Sé, with an extraordinarily outstanding work record in his long and rich tenure in the service of the Church, learned how to identify and characterize, with impressive clarity, the difficulties, the role and the future of Macaenses of his time, whom adverse local circumstances had already driven out of Macau to other countries, primarily Hong Kong. The article, As Colónias Macaenses, which, despite having been authored nine decades ago, contained, Jorge Rangel said, mutatis mutandis, material worthy of reflection in the bosom of the Conselho das Comunidades Macaenses. José da Costa Nunes wrote passionately of the struggles of the sons of Macau to care for themselves and their loved ones domiciled in foreign territory. He deplored that the Macaenses, with their aptitudes, with their facility of adaptation, with the quality of their work, with their knowledge of Eastern ways, could not be an asset to Macau to which blood ties and patriotism continued to link them. Nor is the love for his homeland obliterated from the soul of the emigrant; on the contrary, it is intensified, because from afar, he said, patriotism increments. It saddened José da Costa Nunes to foresee that the generation born in foreign lands, which studied in the language of foreigners, which assimilated the habits of strangers, which had no knowledge of their own national history, which did not speak in the idiom of their motherland, which was ignorant of the names of their heroes, their politicians, their authors, which lived segregated from the intellectual and social life of the Portuguese, could not be intensely patriotic. Necessity impelled the Macaense. In his heart it was natural that he prefer to remain in Macau, together with his own, in his beloved motherland, perpetuating with his presence the happiness of home and lending his services to his own country. Thus, Costa Nunes wrote, “We love our nation, we desire its development, we take pride in its glories, and we suffer with its misfortunes. But great is the love which we consecrate to that village, to that tiny place where we were born and where little pieces of our heart still reside. Greater still is the love which we devote to our loved ones, and almost find ourselves confusing familial love with love for the country, that is to say, we see the country where the family is. Costa Nunes concluded his lengthy treatise with a detailed description of what he deemed crucial to the displaced Macaenses in order to strengthen their sense of patriotic faith and to counteract the factors that tended to divest them of their national character and rights. Therein lay one of the dangers – inevitable, for certain, he said – of the denationalization of the Portuguese colonies of the Far East. Commenting himself on state of affairs in Macau in the early 19th Century, Jorge Rangel wrote that a politically weakened State, the lack of local government participation and continuity, a congenital absence of vision and of the capacity to make decisions, as well as a weak sense of opportunity contributed to the increasingly irreversible degradation of Macau while Hong Kong was rapidly prospering since the last quarter of the 19th Century. Emigration became the only dignified exodus for many, initially to Chinese ports, where the Western powers, Japan and Russia had imposed their presence and set up their installations, and, later, out of the ashes of the Pacific War and the implantation of the communist regime in China, to destinations more distant and more stable. Thus was born and thus grew the diaspora Macaense. In his article, the then Father José da Costa Nunes had already appealed for courses, schools, libraries, books, newspapers and other effective forms of help. In our day, Rangel wrote, many decades later, we continued to hear constant pleas along those lines, but whoever could effectively help often preferred to support initiatives which certainly were more eye-catching, but ephemeral in effect and inconsequential. Even today, with the Casas de Macau and other Macanese associations established, help remains uncertain and at the mercy of the body politic and the resources of foundations where they never attained the priority they deserved. Let us hope, said the President of Instituto Internacional de Macau, that the Conselho das Comunidades Macaense is aware of and is disposed to face seriously this question and to help these entities with the financial capacity to define, in structured form, a participatory system that is more reasonable, correct and utile, in order that Macau can also benefit from the capabilities and the availability manifested many times by these associations and so that the latter may place themselves at the service of their homeland in countries and cities where they are now domiciled. In this sphere it has to be recognized that there remains much to be done. ---o0o---
Recreio Club Hockey Players Newsletter By Horatio Ozório – Mar 3, 2005 He has some spectacularly beautiful photographs in glorious color in the website that are an absolute must-see, but that was not the reason Rennie Marques, Hong Kong born and bred, as he puts it, started the website. The son of Doris and Eddie Marques, he is an avid sportsman and it was his love of field hockey in particular that motivated him to do so. He plays for Clube de Recreio, a Portuguese sporting club, and wears the blue and white uniform of that club with pride. The Macanese diaspora will remember their days in King’s Park, Hong Kong, when Clube de Recreio was a preeminent hockey team in the colony. Rennie Marques started the website to preserve those memories, to foster the game, and to serve as an unofficial newsletter for Recreio hockey players, especially for former teammates who now look back on those days from distant shores.
Enthusiasm for hockey at Recreio was such that the team played in overseas
In
his earlier incarnation,
Rennie Marques
worked in radio for 24 years, A humorist, Rennie Marques throws into his hockey newsletter cum photographic pictorial a number of other topics calculated to entertain visitors to the site. Even the website address is a bit nutty: http://home.graffiti.net/recreio_newsletter:graffiti.net/. After clicking on “Click Here” scroll all the way down to see the array of topics he offers. ---o0o---
The Macau Post Daily Editorial of December 6, 2004 By Harald Bruning
Horacio F. Ozorio, a Hong Kong-born Macanese retiree from California, is
the prime mover of diaspora macaense, a website that intends to
keep all the local and “The aim is to keep everyone connected and coordinated,” Mr. Ozorio told me during a brief visit to our newspaper office yesterday, adding, “Actually, everyone should have a website.” Mr. Ozorio launched the site (www.diasporamacaense.org), which contains useful information and interesting commentary, in October 2003. The former international banker visited The Macau Post Daily with his fellow Californian Macanese, Nuno Prata da Cruz, a member of the Macanese Communities Council. Both
Mr. Ozorio, who lives in
Lafayette,
and Macau-born Mr. Prata da Cruz, an economist by profession, took part in
the week-long Macanese Communities Encontro (get-together), which
ended with a closing dinner last night. While Mr. Ozorio emigrated from
Hong Kong to
California
in 1958, Mr. Prata da Cruz left
Mr. Prata da Cruz said he believed that up to 10,000 Macanese lived in the United States, “over 90 per cent” of them in California. Mr. Ozorio said he hoped that a census could one day show how many Macanese did actually live in the States, adding the US Macanese came from three main areas: Macau, Hong Kong and Shanghai. Both said that Patua – the endangered Macanese Creole – was still spoken by some Macanese in California, namely elderly women. Mr. Prata da Cruz said he himself spoke Patua quite fluently. However, both said they could not quantify the number of Patua speakers in California. Mr. Prata da Cruz also said he and his Portuguese wife were working on a “Macanese anthem” that he hoped to reveal soon. “Viva o Macaense” [long live the Macanese] will be the title,” he said, adding the anthem would resemble Portuguese marching music. He also said he believed that the Macanese would continue to play a “niche” role between the east and west. Mr. Ozorio said he hoped that all Macanese would “leave behind personal dislikes to unite for the common good.” Both men also said that California was treating its Macanese immigrants “very well,” pointing out that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger had sent an “international proclamation” to the Macanese reunion in Macau. (Harald Bruning is the editor of The Macau Post Daily) ---o0o---
Revisiting the Rationale for Macau’s $2,000,000 Clubhouse Grant By Horácio Ozório - January 9, 2005 Many years ago, as an officer on the operations side of an international banking career, I was somewhat taken aback to hear a fellow lending officer say to a client that he was not borrowing enough to accomplish what the officer thought was an excellent business plan the borrower had submitted. Logically, a loan in a higher amount was approved. I find myself wondering if that same principle should not apply to the $2,000,000 so generously donated in 1999 by Fundação Para a Cooperação e o Desenvolvimento de Macau to the three Macaense clubs in California for the acquisition of a clubhouse, i.e, I wonder if the sum donated was not enough to accomplish Macau’s objective. And what was Macau’s objective? Having a clubhouse or cultural center in California to hold the Macaense community together, to enable it to pursue the activities necessary to preserve and promote its culture and tradition, and to help keep alive the memory of over 400 years of the Portuguese presence in the Far East, among other objectives. In recent times, officialdom in Beijing, Lisbon, and the Região Administrativa Especial de Macau (RAEM) have spoken of the importance of the Macaenses in the implementation of the One-Country-Two-Systems formula devised by the late Deng Xiao-ping. China's president Hu Jin-tao has urged the governments of Hong Kong and Macau to work harder at making a success of that formula. Also emphasized by Beijing has been the trade liaison role of Macaenses between China and the Portuguese-speaking countries of the world. And, of course, preservation of the heritage of ancient Macau is important to the tourism trade. The Macaense diaspora too has been cited as important to China. Shortly before Encontro 2004 to which they were invited, the Director of the Comissariado do MNE da RPC, Mr. Pak Chi Kin, and the Comissário Ambassador, Mr. Man Veng Cheong, pointed out the importance that the RPC attributed and continues to attribute to the Macaenses scattered all over the world. In other words, the $2,000,000 donation to the California Macaense diaspora continues to have validity as to the purpose for which it was granted. The “business plan” for the acquisition of clubhouse premises, I would argue, was not, however, well thought out originally. Firstly, with the high and constantly rising prices of real estate in California and the cost of operating a clubhouse, it was extremely difficult to find buildings that met the criteria for purchase. The amount of the grant was partly predicated on the knowledge that funding was anticipated also from Fundação Oriente, which to this day has not materialized due to the Macaense clubs’ failure to meet Fundação Oriente’s criteria. Another aspect of the “business plan” not having been properly thought out was a geographic one. Macau, I believe, had no conception of the distances involved in getting to and from a clubhouse in the San Francisco Bay Area, wherever that clubhouse might be located. I think it was our good friend Julie Senna Fernandes, when she was here with the Doci Papiaçam group, who was astounded at the distances that had to be traversed between the cities of the Bay Area. For instance, a member of Casa de Macau in Concord would have to drive 55 miles to attend a Lusitano Club event in San Mateo, for a round trip of 110 miles. Thus to have a clubhouse even centrally located would entail a long drive for most members. That of itself would surely translate into poor attendance and utilization of the clubhouse. Add other adverse factors for freeway travel necessary to reach the clubhouse – twice-a-day commute traffic, clogged approaches to bridges and tunnels, traffic jams by huge ballpark crowds (7 professional teams), bottlenecks caused by traffic accidents, adverse weather conditions during five months of the year, overpopulation in the San Francisco Bay Area – and going to and from the clubhouse can be a daunting experience, again seriously discouraging members from using the clubhouse. None of this was taken into consideration in arriving at the figure of $2,000,000 to be donated. Another factor that was not taken into consideration in the “business plan” was that for only two club events for the whole year, one by UMA and one by Lusitano Club, it would have been nice to have a large clubhouse. Renting a large hall clearly would be the more economical way to go. So, what should a sound business plan have proposed? A superior and more practical plan then would have been to have two smaller clubhouses, one in the North Bay and one in the South Bay. This would ensure greater attendance and participation by reason of closer proximity to the clubhouse, while being able to count on more helpers living close by to volunteer with the maintenance of the clubhouse without having to drive great distances. A bit audacious perhaps on my part but I think the three clubs should go back to Macau with a new “business plan” and make the case for a supplemental donation that would enable the Macaense diaspora in California to implement Macau’s objectives as originally propounded in 1999. ---o0o---
A Wake-up Call to the Macanese Community By Horácio Ozório - January 7, 2005 A frequent lament expressed by the officers, directors and the general membership alike of the three Macanese social clubs in California is, the youngsters of their community are not terribly interested in their Macanese roots, have little desire to participate in the clubs’ events, and are unwilling for the most part, if they are members, to serve in any management capacity. In the case of one of the clubs, its President has publicly and rhetorically asked me a number of times what my children had ever done for his club. We were discussing the future of the Macanese community. My response always was to ask what he and his club had done to interest the younger generation in club affairs or in the Macanese community. Like, which came first, the chicken or the egg. It was not up to my kids to do the job for which he was elected. Bottom line it left us neither here nor there. Youngsters can hardly be blamed for their lack of interest in becoming a member of a club, let alone run for office as a member. For one thing, the clubs have offered little reason or incentive for them to do so. For another, and that is the thrust of this editorial, in the case of the largest club, its electoral system calls for executive officers of the club to be elected not directly by the membership but by members of its board of directors. The practical effect of this latter is, the same people run for office as directors year after year, who in turn elect and re-elect themselves as officers. One would imagine there isn’t a soul in the club who would not welcome new blood. Well, not quite. There was a year in the late Nineties when two young attorneys and an accountant, all three Macaenses from Southern California, did throw their hats in the ring for directorship. They were defeated at the polls! And nothing has changed. It would be interesting to see what the outcome would be if the bylaws of the clubs uniformly call for election of the President, the Vice President, the Treasurer, and the Secretary by the general membership directly instead of by their directors. This would not guarantee the election of new blood, of course, but younger candidates at least for once would know they stood a chance of being elected if they really wanted the job, had fire in their belly, and campaigned hard enough. Almost for sure those who have had enough of the system in which directors elected their officers would lend their wholehearted support to any young candidates whom they identified as competent and who spelled out a platform that offered real hope for the survival of the Macanese community as such. In a previous editorial I suggested that it would be a worthwhile investment if the clubs paid for the reasonable campaign expenses of the candidates. The time is ripe for such reform. I say it is worth trying because the managerial performance of the three clubs in the past has not exactly been sparkling. After all these years, the three clubs continue to operate wastefully as separate entities, despite having very little to differentiate themselves from each other; interclub bickering is the rule rather than the exception whenever consensus is in the best interests of the community; internal and external personal animosity at senior management levels is rife; and they are stalemated on the issue of acquiring a clubhouse six long years after receiving funds from Macau for the purpose. A New Year is dawning. Why not try it. What is there to lose? ---o0o---
We Think Alike! By Horácio Ozório - December 18, 2004 | ||
Being
recognized for meritorious performance is not something volunteers who
toil for the Macanese community can usually anticipate or look forward
to. Pleading burn out and discouragement 
A
large church by most standards, St. Gabriel’s was completely filled.
Even the pastor, the Reverend Fr. John Sakowski, who eloquently presided
over a beautifully staged ceremony, was moved to wistfully say he wished
his church were always so well attended. It was estimated that about
700 attended the Celebration of Life ceremony, easily a record of some
kind. Following the Memorial Mass, it was standing room only at the
seated reception held at the United Irish Cultural Center (wouldn’t it
have been just great had it been the United Macanese Cultural Center!).
Daughter Maria enthused, “I know my dad must have been overlooking the
function with a drink in one hand and a cigarette in the other grinning
away to see and know how many dear friends were there.”
In the June 20, 2005
issue of the Jornal Tribuna de Macau, Jorge Rangel, President of the
Instituto Internacional de Macau, quoted as follows from an article by D.
José da Costa Nunes published in the magazine “Oriente” No. 3, of March
1915:
invitational
hockey tournaments, in 
but decided to change his line of work and ended up with an email service
provider. “It was at their knee, so to speak, that I learnt about putting
Web pages together.” He is webmaster for a number of sites.
overseas
Macanese together with the help of the Internet.
Macau for The Golden
State in 1968.