Ma Man-kei

Ma Man-kei GML (Chinese: 馬萬祺; pinyin: Mǎ Wànqí; October 1919 – May 26, 2014) was a Chinese-Macanese businessman, tycoon, entrepreneur and politician. A strong supporter of the Chinese Communist Party, Ma was a proponent of the transfer of sovereignty over Macau from Portugal to the People's Republic of China, which took place in 1999.[1] Ma was Vice Chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference's (CPPCC) eighth, ninth, tenth and eleventh sessions, beginning in 1993.[1]

Ma was born in 1919 in Nanhai County, Guangdong.[1] He moved to Hong Kong and opened his first business during the late 1930s.[2] He later to Macau in the 1940s and expanded his business.[1] He aided the Chinese Communist Party during the 1950s by importing commodities from Macau and Hong Kong to mainland China.[1]

Ma served as the Vice Chairman of the committee which drafted the basic laws for the Macau Special Administrative Region and had a hand in the territory's transfer.[1][2] He was also President of the Macau Chamber of Commerce for life.[1] Ma was a former member of the Legislative Assembly of Macau.[2]

Ma was also the chairman of the Chinese Literature Foundation.[2] Deng Xiaoping penned the title for one of Ma Man-kei's poems in 1998.[1]

In 2001, Ma was one of the first recipients of the Grand Lotus Medal of Honour.[3]

Ma died at a Beijing hospital on May 26, 2014, at the age of 95, where he had been hospitalized with heart disease for several years.[1] His funeral was held at the Macau Forum.[4]

Minor planet 228158 Mamankei is named in his honor.[5]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Prominent Macau entrepreneur Ma Man-kei dies at age 95". Hong Kong Economic Journal. 2014-05-27. Retrieved 2014-06-23.
  2. ^ a b c d "Ma Man Kei passes away at 95". Macau Business Daily. 2014-05-28. Archived from the original on 2014-06-24. Retrieved 2014-06-23.
  3. ^ Ho, Edmund (2001-12-21). "Boletim Oficial da Região Administrativa Especial de Macau 澳門特別行政區公報" [Official Bulletin of the Special Administrative Region of Macau] (PDF). Government of Macau (in Portuguese and Chinese). Retrieved 2021-08-31.
  4. ^ "600 attend Ma Man Kei funeral". Macau News. 2014-06-03. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2014-06-23.
  5. ^ "M.P.C. 118219" (PDF). Minor Planet Center. 8 November 2019. Retrieved 12 November 2019.


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