Charity is power : a study of Chinese merchants and charitable organizations in Macao, 1849-1949

Abstract

Kiang Wu Hospital (hereafter KWH) and Tung Sin Tong (hereafter TST) have always been recognized as the most powerful and influential charitable organizations in Macao, which have been playing active role in politics, economics and many other realms since their establishment in late Qing period.

This thesis attempts to explore the process of power transition in Macao’s history, when the city transferred from Sino-Portuguese administration to Portuguese colonial rule in 1849. KWH and TST emerged as a power hub within the Chinese community, as the Portuguese badly needed Chinese collaborators to help them stabilize local society. By scrutinizing the historical development of KWH, TST in the context of Macao’s social transformation between 1849 and 1949, and utilizing a theoretical framework of “clientelism in gemeinschaft”, this research provides a new interpretation of the characteristics of social management in Macao.

In the mid-1800s, the laissez-faire policy pursued by Macao’s colonial government made room for the development of the charities. Through giving aid to the public, KWH and TST not only gained recognition from the colonial government and the general public in Macao but also set up close connections with Chinese mainland authorities. The pragmatic approach adopted by leaders of KWH and TST reflected their dual allegiance on the one hand, and the process of establishing, exercising, and consolidating power in the hands of Macao Chinese merchants on the other. As such, leaders of the charities could strengthen their roles as social representatives in Macao. In this way, KWH and TST became the power hub of the Chinese community in Macao. In addition, the relatively conservative social atmosphere of the city also created space for the burgeoning of patron-client relationships that formed between superiors and subordinates.

In terms of organization, operations, service focus, or service patterns, the cases of KWH and TST did not differ much in comparison with charities in Hong Kong, Guangzhou, and other communities in South China at that time. But because of the special policy pursued by the Macao colonial government and idiosyncratic socio-political environment of Macao itself, the two institutions followed an unparalleled developmental path, which led them to become the social guardians and power hub of the Chinese community there. Today, the socio-political management pattern continues unchanged, and clientelism in gemeinschaft remains the dominant mechanism of social operation in Macao. The cases of KWH and TST clearly demonstrate an irrefutable fact that charity is power in Macao.