Legislature President Wang Jin-pyng has promised that Taiwan will go ahead with plans to allow casinos to open in the Kinmen Islands. Wang said that’s despite opposition from the Chinese government.
Gambling is generally illegal in Taiwan. But amendments to the Offshore Island Development Act passed in 2009 allow residents of Taiwan’s outlying islands, including the Kinmen Islands, to hold referendums on legalizing gambling locally.
The Taiwan-administered Kinmen Islands are located just off the coast of China. The island of Lieyu, off the main island in the group, is one proposed site.
However, head of China’s Taiwan Affairs Office Zhang Zhijun voiced his opposition to a casino in the island group during a visit to Kinmen over the weekend. Zhang said that Taiwan should do what he called “the right thing” and stop casinos opening in the islands.
Zhang said China will cut-off direct transit, shipping and trade links between the Mainland and Kinmen if Taiwan goes ahead with legalizing gambling in the islands.
In response, Legislature President Wang Jin-pyng said Taiwan has already given permission for outlying islands to legalize gambling. He said that the legislature must now come up with laws related on gambling in order to keep the gambling industry regulated.
However, Wang said that having regulations on gambling in place does not mean that casinos will actually be built. Wang said that the decision on whether to build casinos on Kinmen will be left to investors.