Corruption In China Essay

Macau is sometimes referred to the “Macau Laundry Service” and this laundry service has proven to be especially attractive to corrupt Chinese officials (Osnos). These corrupt government officials typically spend a lot of money, however, the money isn’t theirs to spend. On one account a party of two party officials lost a staggering $12 million in Macau casinos (Osnos). Unfortunately, this kind of behavior is typical of many party officials. On average it is estimated that officials might spend $3.3 million dollars’ worth of public funds before getting caught (Osnos). Despite Macau’s widespread illegal activity, the government has made a conscious effort in recent years to cut down on corruption within the borders of Macau. The effects of this anti-corruption measure shed light on how deep corruption truly ran in Macau in the previous years. In 2008, Mainland China ran an anti-corruption drive that coincided with an effort to limit the amount of mainland tourists to Macau in an attempt to decrease corruption (The Huffington Post). As a result, Macau’s economy shrank by an overwhelming 17.2% (CNN). This drastic economic decrease is proof of how much of Macau’s economy is truly based on its gambling …show more content…
Evan Osnos, author of “Age of Ambition in China”, makes the statement, “Even by China’s standards, the speed of Macau’s growth was breathtaking” (Osnos). This quote unveils the drastic speed at which this territory gained popularity, and with it, economic success. While the speed is a remarkable feat in itself, it is really the amount of money that flooded the city which is the most important characteristic of this city’s urbanization. Osnos mentions that in 2010, “high rollers in Macau wagered about six hundred billion dollars, roughly the amount of cash that was withdrawn from all the ATMs in America in one year”