There were only a few tourists from the main island of Taiwan perusing souvenirs on Saturday on Chungcheng Road, the busiest street in Penghu's capital of Makung.
Following the crash of a China Airlines plane near Penghu on May 25, the island county's tourist industry is going through its quietest summer in years.
According to statistics from the Association of Tourism in Penghu, visitors to the island were 63 percent lower in the weeks following the crash than at the same time last year.
TAIPEI TIMES FILE PHOTO
But even at the best of times, despite Penghu's scenery and brisk sea breeze, tourism has never taken off as the county had hoped.
The recent bad luck for the islands has once again caused many to look to legalizing gambling as a way to attract tourists.
Many tourism experts and local residents, however, said that legalizing gambling is an irresponsible way to promote Penghu's tourism.
The islands, whose Chinese name is taken from the Portuguese name Pescadores, have a rich cultural heritage dating back to the Ming Dynasty.
Its 300km coastline offers many activities, including parasailing, jetskiing, sailing and snorkeling. It lures more than 200 species of migratory birds, making it an important spot for Asia's birdwatchers.
The central government, however, ignored these resources for much of the second half of the past century, seeing the islands in mainly political and military terms.
"Penghu was regarded as a military base until the early 1990s. As a result, the central government never wanted to develop the islands, which resulted in Penghu's shortages of water and electricity and, of course, a lot of five-star hotels," said Chiung Kuang-hui (莊光輝), an official of the Penghu County Government's tourism bureau.
"Also, with some 40,000 votes in the presidential election, who would care about us," Chiung said.
Budget
In response to pressure from Penghu residents two years ago, the central government agreed to give between NT$100 million and NT$200 million to the Penghu National Scenic Area Administration Office to promote the islands' tourism.
The budget, however, did little to develop Penghu or its tourist industry. No large-scale projects were completed and, despite numerous promotions, the plentiful tourism resources of Penghu failed to draw crowds.
"The money was spent on constructing new harbors based on election concerns, which resulted in the many unnecessary harbors in Penghu now," said an anti-gambling activist in Penghu, who only gave his surname, Lin.
According to Penghu County's Construction Bureau, there are now 67 harbors servicing Penghu's 97 villages.
"The quality of these harbors is poor, and Penghu's coastline was seriously damaged by their construction," he said.
Aside from questionable construction projects, the local government's promotion campaigns have also been criticized as being carried out with little regard for standard marketing techniques.
To promote the island, the local government hosted swimming events, fireworks displays and parades of elaborately-decorated vehicles.
"These events can't distinguish Penghu's qualities at all," said Kao Chih-peng (
Another controversial side-effect of the tourism drive is the construction of large, international-standard hotels, which will probably be the setting for the casinos if the pro-gambling lobby has its way.
According to the scenic area administration, there are five holiday resorts being planned. The biggest will occupy more than 11 hectares, but only two of them, the Big Penghu International Holiday Resort in Paisha and the Jinsha Bay Holiday Resort in Lintou's urban planning district, will target families and international tourists with facilities such as a shopping mall, spa, nightclubs and casinos.
Supporters of legalizing gambling said it would attract investment to the islands and create job opportunities for local residents.
Critics argue that gambling would not only damage the islands' security and environment, but also increase the cost of living.
Referendum
Kao said the worst aspect of this controversial issue was that gambling's supporters had misled the central government into believing that Penghu residents are eager for gambling.
Several Penghu-based private groups held a non-binding referendum early last month, in which more than 80 percent of Penghu voters said they supported legalizing casino-style gambling in the archipelago.
"The referendum's result is fake. One voter could cast five votes," said Hong Chi-guang (
Gambling in Penghu would bring more than NT$20 billion in tax revenues for the local government, supporters say. Other benefits would apparently be free medical treatment and transportation, NT$10,000 a month for elderly residents and free education for children, although details of these benefits have not been explained.
The question used in the referendum also seemed to brush over the disadvantages: "Do you agree to legalize gambling in Penghu to stimulate Penghu's economic development?"
Kao said he would be speechless if Penghu's residents really wanted to legalize gambling.
"Those politicians just want to take advantage of gambling's legalization, especially the increase of land prices," he said. "Will local residents be able to live with the increased cost of living? I doubt it."
To bring closure to the dispute, the local government has submitted a proposal for an official referendum to the Executive Yuan.
The Ministry of the Interior (MOI), meanwhile, has completed an assessment of the effects of legalizing gambling in Penghu, in which most government departments opposed the idea, especially the Ministry of Justice and the MOI's Police Administration, according to an official familiar with the evaluation who was speaking on condition of anonymity.
However, Minister of the Interior Yu Cheng-hsien (
Of several counties that have expressed an interest in legalizing gambling since it was first discussed in 1988, Penghu has been the most likely place to actually make it happen.
But some residents are suspicious of what effects it will have on the area.
A 53-year-old woman who owns two souvenir shops on Chungcheng Road, but refused to give her name, said she would close her stores if Penghu legalized gambling.
"I don't think the tourists who come to gamble would spend even one dollar at the local shops. They would go directly to those high-class hotels from the airport," she said.
"And I think security would become so bad that I would not be able to take care of my shops."
Chen Chi-ji (
"In my opinion, gambling should be legalized in a well-developed city, such as Taipei, which is more able to handle the serious side-effects gambling would bring," Chen said.
To show its regret for the decline in tourism in Penghu, China Airlines has sponsored a one-month long seafood and beer festival, which will start next week.
But Kao doubted the value of such events.
"Only when the government spends money in the right way will Penghu's tourism develop," he said. "Who wants to fly to Penghu just for seafood and beer."
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