In the south-west Asian nation of Myanmar, draft legislation has allegedly been submitted to the 440-seat House of Representatives that would legalize the performance of a restricted number of foreigner-only casinos.
Quantify would establish a framework:
Based on a Wednesday report from The Myanmar Times paper, the proposed Gambling Bill 2018 would amend the country ’s existing all-purpose ban on casinos by setting a framework that would then be improved via the subsequent adoption of detailed rules and bylaws.
Favorable place:
Long known as Burma until a controversial title change from 1989, Myanmar is a nation of some 51 million individuals sandwiched between India, Thailand and China. But, gambling chances are rare for the vast majority of citizens in these neighboring countries and it’s hoped that the introduction of casinos could allow the ‘Land of the Golden Pagodas’ to bring more foreign tourists and related tax revenues.
The Myanmar Times reported that the proposed legislation also attempts to draw more foreign cash into Myanmar as the past five decades have seen the value of the local kyat currency plummet by nearly 100 percent when compared with the United States dollar.
Border casinos envisioned:
House of Representatives Bill Committee Secretary,” Kyaw Soe Lin, told the paper that the successful passage of this new legislation would likely result in casinos being opened along Myanmar’s border with China and Thailand. However, the official declared that such facilities would be strictly out of bounds for locals and be banned from being located in tourist hotspots such as the ancient city of Bagan.
Mingaladon Township Representative Aung Hlaing Win to The Myanmar Times…
“After the [bicameral legislature] approves the amended bill, casinos are permitted to open in Myanmar. Only foreigners will be allowed to the casinos. As such, the government will target regions with the most foreigners such as near the border. The departure of the Gambling Bill 2018 will allow a whole new sector to flourish and draw essential taxes and foreign currency to the country.
The paper reported that Win went on to point out that the budget surplus for Macau, which is the sole Chinese land where casino gaming is legal, is five times greater than Myanmar’s total national shortage. He detailed that the new legislation will hope to lessen this called $3.23 billion shortfall by establishing a way that would allow the government to collect taxes from winning and operators players.
