| Unit Name: | People's Liberation Army Macao Garrison |
| Native Name: | Portuguese: Guarnição em Macau do Exército de Libertação do Povo Chinês |
| Country: | ∟ |
| Branch: | |
| Size: | 1,000 |
| Command Structure: | Southern Theater Command |
| Garrison: | Macau |
| Commander1: | Major General Xu Liangcai[1] |
| Commander1 Label: | Commander |
| Commander2: | Major General Zhou Wugang[2] |
| Commander2 Label: | Political commissar |
The People's Liberation Army Macao Garrison is a garrison of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), responsible for defense duties in the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) since the sovereignty of Macau was transferred to China in 1999.
The PLA stations between 500 and 600 troops in Macau, primarily as a symbolic presence to underscore Chinese sovereignty. The remainder of the 1,200-strong Macau garrison resides just across the Chinese border in Zhuhai.
Although the Macao Basic Law states that the Macau SAR government may "when necessary" ask the central government to allow the garrison to assist in maintaining public order or disaster relief, Chief Executive Edmund Ho has said that, in keeping with the Basic Law the garrison will play no role in internal security. The garrison has maintained a low profile, with soldiers generally wearing civilian clothing when off base and not engaging in business activities.
According to the Law on Stationing Troops in the Macau Special Administrative Region (or Macao Garrison Law, passed by the NPC Standing Committee on June 28, 1999), the mission of the PLA in Macau is to defend the special administrative region by "preventing and resisting aggression; safe-guarding the security of Macau; undertaking defense services; managing military facilities; and handling related foreign military affairs." The PLA can also be called upon by the chief executive to help maintain public order and assist with disaster relief efforts. The members of the garrison are mainly ground force troops.
At the request of Macau SAR Government, the PLA Macao Garrison was deployed to assist in disaster relief and cleaning up in the aftermath of Typhoon Hato in August 2017, the first time for domestic affairs in Macau history.[3] About 1,000 troops were called in to help remove debris and clear roads.[4]
The PLA Macao Garrison is under the command and control of the Central Military Commission and under the operational supervision of the Southern Theater Command, and its budget is administered by the central government in Beijing. A PLA major general heads the Macao Garrison.
| Model | Type | Number | Dates | Builder | Details | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ZFB91 | 6 wheeled Armored Personnel Carrier (Internal Security/Anti-Riot Vehicle) | 10 | 1980s | with 12.7mm machine gun | ||
| utility vehicle | N/A | N/A | variant of Soviet UAZ469B | |||
| Troop/Cargo Carrier Truck | N/A | N/A | ||||
| EQ2081/2100 | Utility Truck | N/A | N/A | (formerly EQ240 and likely Chinese variants of the Zil 131) and other support vehicles | ||
| N/A | N/A | |||||
| N/A | N/A |
The garrison was temporarily stationed at the 11 storey Edificação Long Cheng/Long Cheng Mansion. It is now stationed on Taipa located amongst the new casinos in Cotai (Estrada da Baía de Nossa Sra. da Esperança across from Hotel Venetian and Galaxy Macau).
There are more troops at the barracks in Zhuhai (Zhengling).