Over the past two decades, Penghu, an island county located in the center of the Taiwan Strait, has assiduously lobbied the central government and the Legislature for the legalization of the gambling industry.
Consisting of 90 islets and with a population of 90,000, Penghu fears marginalization and has pinned its economic hopes on attracting visitors with games of skill and chance.
Although Penghu is a popular tourist destination between April and September, tourism nearly grinds to a halt in the winter because of the chilly weather and strong gales. As a result, the county is desperate to establish an entertainment venue that gives visitors something to do indoors.
Penghu has good reason to look for a financial boost from casinos as the gambling industry is expanding rapidly in Asia. According to a survey released by the American Gaming Association in June, gambling revenues in the region could surpass those generated in the United States by 2012.
Booming gambling meccas in Macau as well as new casinos in Singapore were expected to drive this growth, the AGA predicted. The association reported that U.S. casinos raked in US$34.1 billion in 2007, while Asia's casino gambling market was estimated to have made between US$15 billion and US$20 billion during the same period.
The industry's potential has reignited the debate on whether casinos should be legalized in Taiwan. With neighboring countries such as Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore either preparing to or having already lifted gambling bans, there is a growing sense that Taiwan should jump on the bandwagon before it is too late.
In order for that to happen, the Legislature would have to pass the so-called "casino article" in the Offshore Islands Development Act. Legislators have already rejected the article twice: in January 2002 by a 51-vote margin and in December last year, by 27 votes.
An aide to Lin Pin-kuan, a fourth-term independent legislator from Penghu County, suggested it might be a case of third time lucky. While the previous Democratic Progressive Party government was firmly opposed to gambling, the aide said the ruling Kuomintang's position on this issue had softened in recent years.
"Lawmakers have long blocked the article because many Taiwanese people consider gambling immoral, but the enormous successes of the casino industry in other Asian countries made for a powerful argument," said Lin's aide. "Taiwan has legalized lotteries. People should be able to discuss casinos more reasonably now," he added.
Lin sent his draft of the casino article to the Legislature for approval in each of his four terms. During a legislative Economics Committee review of the development act at the end of May, he called on Minister Chen Tain-jy of the Council for Economic Planning and Development to deliver on President Ma Ying-jeou's campaign promise to pass the casino article as soon as possible.
Chen declined to give a definite timetable for the passage of the law, noting that the CEPD needed to study the issue from the perspectives of national economic development and land-use planning. The council intends to send its version of the casino article to the Legislature for discussion in December.
Anxious about the fate of the article, Penghu County Magistrate Wang Chien-fa and county councilors held a news conference June 26 urging the Legislature to pass the law "immediately."
During a visit to the Mainland Affairs Council July 15, Wang explained that Penghu has become increasingly isolated since the commencement of the "mini-three-links" in January 2001. The "mini-three-links" refer to the direct transport of people and goods between Taiwan's outlying islands of Kinmen and Matsu and several ports of the Chinese province of Fujian.
"Penghu has always been excluded from the scheme, and its marginalization could be further exacerbated by the launch of direct charter flights between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait July 4," Wang said.
The delay of the passage of the casino article may already have resulted in Penghu losing out on potential investment. Las Vegas Sands Corp., one of the world's largest gambling operators and the winner of the 2006 bid to build Singapore's first casino, has had its eyes on Taiwan's outlying islands since 2000.
"Las Vegas Sands was the first foreign group to come to inspect Penghu. The corporation visited the islands even before it went to Macau," said Hung Tung-lin, director of the Penghu County Government's Tourism Bureau.
"However, because Taiwan had not passed the casino article in 2000, the group turned its attention to Macau and Singapore. There is really not another minute to lose. The industry could have generated more than 20,000 job opportunities in Penghu," Hung emphasized.
Nevertheless, casino developers' interest in Penghu remains high. A number of the county's isles are considered to be ideal locations for casino resorts. The local government has kept in close contact with investors from the United States, Southeast Asia and Australia. One of them has proposed a venture worth US$200 million, according to Hung, who declined to reveal further details.
In an attempt to convince the central government and the Legislature that the people of Penghu had bought into the idea of legalized gambling, the county government conducted a referendum on the issue in December 2003.
The poll found that 56.6 percent of voters were in favor of casinos while 43.4 percent were not. But critics questioned the reliability of the referendum because it achieved a turnout of only 21 percent of the electorate.
Defending the results, Hung said approximately 15,000 citizens had taken part in the poll. "Their desire to legalize gambling was strong enough for them to come out to vote. Others did not vote not necessarily because they are against the idea, but because they may simply think this issue has nothing to do with them or are willing to support casinos conditionally," said Hung.
The county government also asked residents to express opinions about the changes gambling would bring to the islands. Its survey found that the citizens' chief concerns included the possibility of worsening social order, unfairness in distributing the revenues, damage to the environment and the tranquility of fishing villages, rising commodity prices and moral corruption.
Hung is confident that with proper planning in place, most of these concerns could be addressed. He said Penghu would model its casino resorts on those in Singapore, where gambling is just one form of entertainment on offer.
"Gaming might account for only 5 percent of all activities taking place at these resorts. We also want to build hotels, shopping centers, conference halls, exhibition venues and theme parks that prominently feature the wealth of our county's natural beauty," said Hung.
"But casinos would still play an important part because they are one of the key attractions for foreign investors," stressed the director.
While there are casinos in around 3,000 cities in more than 140 countries, Hung said tourists would come to Penghu because of its unique combination of gambling, dynamic island culture and oceanic surroundings.
Even if the casino article does pass, Penghu is likely to face stiff competition on the domestic front: At least 14 other counties and cities in Taiwan, including Taipei, Hsinchu, Taoyuan, Kinmen, Nantou and Taichung, are also eager to open casinos.
Taipei County Magistrate Chou Hsi-wei, who led a delegation of businesspeople on a visit to legendary gaming houses such as the Las Vegas Sands, MGM Mirage and the Venetian in the United States in June, said these groups were "highly interested in developing casinos in Taipei."
Last month, Richard Branson's Virgin Group Ltd. was reported to be considering building a casino complex in a scenic coastal area in Hsinchu City. "A casino is part of the project, but we hope the group will also invest in theme parks and hotels in the complex," Hsinchu Mayor Lin Jung-tzer said.
However, Hung advised that counties and cities in Taiwan should try to bolster their economies by cultivating industries in which they hold a competitive edge, rather than rushing headlong into the casino business. "For example, Taoyuan should focus on capitalizing on its airport and Taichung could prioritize its property sector," he said.
Write to Melody Chen at melodychen@mail.gio.gov.tw