What was Macao like in WWII?

by CandyAppleHesperus

I know about the history of Hong Kong during WWII, but I haven't seen much about Macao during that period. How did Portuguese neutrality play into the war? Did Japanese forces ever behave in a hostile manner towards it? Did it receive any refugees, European or Asian?

When_Ducks_Attack

I answered a similar question about Macau in WWII here, about eight months ago!

Short version: Japan sorta played along with Portugal's neutrality, but that didn't stop them from stationing "advisers" in the city, kicking the Portuguese garrison off a nearby island, and basically acting like they ran the place.

Because, really, they did. It's not like Portugal could have done anything to prevent them.

Das_Orakel_vom_Berge

To answer the other part of your question, yes it did receive some refugees. Some reports say that Macau's population swelled to nearly 700,000 people during the war and was largely reliant on Japan for food imports to prevent mass starvation.