Inside Asian Gaming

INSIDE ASIAN GAMING | November 2009 10 Market Outlook Pleasure Island Downtown Kinmen Under the isolationist policy in place until 1992, Taiwan turned Kinmen and Penghu into island fortresses against a possible invasion by the People’s Republic of China W ord reaches Inside Asian Gaming that Kinmen, an island archipelago hotly tipped to host Taiwan’s first casino resort, already has a thriving gaming industry—it’s just that it’s underground. IAG ’s sources say the reason that boatloads of residents from the nearby Chinese mainland currently take the hour-long ferry ride to Kinmen has very little to do with the latter’s seaside charm. Kinmen is in fact bristling with concrete blockhouses and military bunkers from the days when Taiwan’s former right wing nationalist dictator, Chiang Kai-shek, and his successors expected imminent invasion by his old civil war communist adversary Mao Zedong. The reason for the Chinese tourists’ current interest in Kinmen, according to IAG ’s moles, is that there are places where they can play baccarat (for money) without the troublesome requirement of sharing the gross with the Taiwan government. Given the number of bunkers and communication tunnels sunk into the earth on Kinmen, some of these establishments may be literally as well as metaphorically, underground. More visible are the gaming industry training establishments set up on Kinmen by enterprising folk anticipating that Kinmen will have the country’s first above board casino. “A couple of training schools have already been set up there, I hear,” explains one source. “Perhaps they know something we don’t,” added the source. Last month, Kinmen overtook Penghu as the frontrunner in the race to become the first place in Taiwan to introduce legalised casino gaming when the residents of Penghu unexpectedly rejected by 17,359 votes to 13,397 a proposal to allow gambling on their islands. A law passed by Taiwan’s legislature in January allows gambling offshore, but not on the main island of Taiwan. The result of Penghu’s referendum was a bitter blow to those locals and investors who have been campaigning on and off in government circles for 16 years for the right to allow Penghu to develop one or more casinos. The pro-lobby argued it would extend the tourism season into the winter and boost the flagging local economy.