閱讀難度：

A referendum on Saturday has paved the way for Taiwan's first casino, Reuters reported.

Almost 57 percent of Matsu's voters opted in favor of government plans to build a casino, local Taiwanese media reported.

Las Vegas players including Sheldon Adelson's Las Vegas Sands and MGM Resorts have been among the many companies keen on setting up a resort in Taiwan, given its close proximity to the Chinese mainland and large markets such as Korea and Japan.

Gambling is illegal in Taiwan, but an amendment passed in 2009 permits the construction of casino resorts on offshore islands. （點(diǎn)擊路透社網(wǎng)站查看原文）

馬祖公投設(shè)賭場

?????? 據(jù)路透社報(bào)道，馬祖于上周六就是否設(shè)賭場進(jìn)行公投，臺灣或?qū)a(chǎn)生第一家賭場。

?????? 臺灣當(dāng)?shù)孛襟w稱，將近57%的馬祖民眾投票支持政府設(shè)立賭場。

?????? 鑒于臺灣與中國大陸近在咫尺，并毗鄰韓國、日本等大市場，很多大公司都希望能在那里開設(shè)休閑場所，其中就包括賭王謝爾登?阿德爾森執(zhí)掌的拉斯韋加斯金沙集團(tuán)以及美高梅國際酒店集團(tuán)。

?????? 據(jù)悉，賭博在臺灣是非法的；但2009年對此作出了修改，允許在離島上建賭場。

(China.org.cn July 10, 2012)