PHUKET: Patong police have been checking bars to make sure they close at 2am under orders from the Interior Ministry.
Staff from the Chokdee Bar in Soi Sansabai are pictured paying a fine today for being open after hours.
Officers from Kathu Police Station said they had checked main streets and lanes in the Patong and Kalim areas but found only one bar open after 2am.
The order to enforce closing time came from the Interior Ministry after a savage axe attack by the staff of a Phuket City pub on a Phuket resort owner-manager about 4.30am on January 4.
Three Australian tourists were badly injured in a second attack close to 2am at a Patong nightclub on January 23. The Australians say they were attacked, like resort owner-manager Vorasit ''Wan'' Issara, for no apparent reason.
There have been eight arrests in the case of Khun Wan, who was with Hollywood film actor Jeremy Renner at the time, but only one arrest in the case of the three Australians, although they claim between 10 and 15 men took part in what one termed a ''farang lynching'' (a premeditated ambush of Western tourists).
Observers also believe authorities are concerned to make sure Phuket makes the best possible impression on Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yubamrung when he visits the island as part of an anti-drugs campaign on February 17.
The Government is believed to be considering a plea for more police on Phuket together with a plan for turning the island into a special economic zone, along the same lines as Pattaya.
Bar owners in Patong and Pattaya are campaigning for early-morning opening beyond the present 2am closing time.
Local businesspeople have never wholeheartedly supported the creation of a special economic zone on Phuket because they believe it would simply mean more corruption.
Phuket is under consideration for a visit by Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and Government leaders for a full Cabinet meeting in March.
Staff from the Chokdee Bar in Soi Sansabai are pictured paying a fine today for being open after hours.
Officers from Kathu Police Station said they had checked main streets and lanes in the Patong and Kalim areas but found only one bar open after 2am.
The order to enforce closing time came from the Interior Ministry after a savage axe attack by the staff of a Phuket City pub on a Phuket resort owner-manager about 4.30am on January 4.
Three Australian tourists were badly injured in a second attack close to 2am at a Patong nightclub on January 23. The Australians say they were attacked, like resort owner-manager Vorasit ''Wan'' Issara, for no apparent reason.
There have been eight arrests in the case of Khun Wan, who was with Hollywood film actor Jeremy Renner at the time, but only one arrest in the case of the three Australians, although they claim between 10 and 15 men took part in what one termed a ''farang lynching'' (a premeditated ambush of Western tourists).
Observers also believe authorities are concerned to make sure Phuket makes the best possible impression on Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yubamrung when he visits the island as part of an anti-drugs campaign on February 17.
The Government is believed to be considering a plea for more police on Phuket together with a plan for turning the island into a special economic zone, along the same lines as Pattaya.
Bar owners in Patong and Pattaya are campaigning for early-morning opening beyond the present 2am closing time.
Local businesspeople have never wholeheartedly supported the creation of a special economic zone on Phuket because they believe it would simply mean more corruption.
Phuket is under consideration for a visit by Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and Government leaders for a full Cabinet meeting in March.
One attack was in a local Thai environment and the other happened before 2 am, so none of these have anything to do with the opening hours in the tourist zones.
There are to many people on Bangla Rd. at 2am. Many are drunk, a lot of police and the whole atmosphere is very tensed.
Would be better to allow the discos and certain bars to be open until 3pm, then the crowd would ooze more quietly to their hotel rooms.
Posted by Sherlock on February 4, 2012 13:31
Editor Comment:
Sherlock, whatever you might care to think, Soi Bangla and Patong remain ''local Thai environments.'' Extended closing hours rely on proprietors and police enforcing regulations against drunkenness and bad behavior.