CE reaffirms Macau's safeguarding of press freedom
Yuki Lei
October 28, 2026
Macau fully safeguards press and publication freedom under the Basic Law and the Press Law and has consistently supported the media sector in strengthening its professional capabilities and achieving healthy development, Chief Executive (CE) Sam Hou Fai said as he opened the 59th Annual Conference of the Chinese Language Press Institute.
Speaking at yesterday’s opening ceremony, Sam said Macau’s rising profile as a global center for tourism and leisure has demonstrated in practice that “one country, two systems” enjoys significant institutional advantages and strong vitality.
“The annual conference of the Chinese Language Press Institute has come to Macau once again, underscoring the industry’s care for and support of the ‘one country, two systems’ cause and the development of the Macau Special Administrative Region,” he said. “We hope everyone will take this opportunity to explore Macau, see more of it, and help promote and report on Macau. We welcome you to send more staff to Macau for interviews and exchanges in the future to deepen cooperation.”
Sam said the news media play an irreplaceable role in disseminating information, exchanging ideas, promoting development and public oversight, and, in the new environment, carry the important mission of spreading positive energy, building soft power, enhancing mutual trust, and building consensus. He said he believed the conference would help advance the high-quality development of Chinese-language newspapers worldwide and contribute to telling the story of “one country, two systems,” Macau, and China.
The CE noted that his government is aligning with the national 15th Five-Year Plan and advancing Macau’s Third Five-Year Plan, based on Macau’s positioning as a world center of tourism and leisure, a platform for China-Portuguese-speaking countries, a base for exchange and cooperation where Chinese culture is the mainstream and diverse cultures coexist, and a highland for talent.
He also said the government is pursuing economic diversification through four major projects and a government guidance fund, advancing Hengqin-Macau integration and building Macau into a bridgehead for national high-level opening up and a window for exchanges between Chinese and Western civilizations.
The annual conference, themed “How Chinese-Language Press Can Expand Its Influence Amid Unprecedented Changes of a Century” and running through October 29, opened yesterday morning, with guests and industry representatives from across Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau, as well as overseas Chinese communities, arriving in Macau.
At a welcome dinner hosted by the Government Information Bureau (GCS) on Monday evening, Louie Wong said Macau was honored to host fellow Chinese newspaper professionals, noting that the conference had previously been held in Macau in 1996 and 2006. He said the 27 years since Macau’s return had shown that the most direct and powerful way to practice “one country, two systems” is to convert institutional advantages into governance capacity, cultural heritage into city appeal, and national opportunities into tangible benefits for residents.
Dato’ Lok Nam Fai, representing the press institute, thanked GCS for the invitation and said that Chinese-language newspapers carry the mission of passing on Chinese culture and conveying authentic voices, with exchanges at the conference expected to inject new vitality into the industry’s future.
