SINGAPORE — When Clarke Quay shuts down at 3am, drinkers who are not yet ready for the night to end know where to go — a “Thai disco”.

This catch-all term refers to bars and clubs around Singapore that stay open until as late as 6am, play a mix of Chinese and Thai music, and feature hostesses from China and South-east Asia. They also tend to witness frequent outbursts of violence.

Recently, these places came into the spotlight when a 31-year-old man was found dead in Orchard Towers, following a fight which was believed to have started in such a club. Seven suspects, aged between 22 and 27, were charged with murder but three later had the murder charges dropped.

Many young patrons of such Thai discos told TODAY that they, too, have seen violence break out around them at these discos, and some have had close shaves with other aggressive patrons.

Still, they said they would keep returning to these discos because they open late and the drinks are much cheaper than in most other drinking spots.

Managers of Thai discos told TODAY they take steps to manage their patrons, with one raising the minimum entry age to 23 three years ago in a bid to reduce violent incidents.

THE DRAW OF THE THAI DISCO

TODAY spoke to 10 regular patrons of Thai discos aged between 19 and 26.

One of them, a full-time national serviceman (NSF), who wished to be known only as Bryan, said he had a close shave with a potentially violent encounter at the beginning of the year.

The 19-year-old, who spends almost every weekend at Thai discos, said: “Some guy came up to my friend and asked him how he knew this girl and things started to get very heated. Another guy behind him started shouting at us and he took out a taser and shoved it right in front of our faces.”

Fortunately, on-duty bouncers reacted quickly, separated the group and calmed both sides.

He said: “The taser was so close to me I could hear the buzzing sound. But all the bouncers stepped in and handled everything very professionally. After the guy (who threatened to taser us) left, the bouncers stayed around our table to take care of us.”

Retail and corporate assistant Miss Sherlyn Chua, 21, who visits Thai discos once a week, said that she had often seen fights happening around her.

Recounting one incident, she said: “A group of people started fighting in front of our sofa and as the number of people involved started to increase, they also got closer to us. They started to become violent with anyone they saw, including me and my friends.”

However, Miss Chua still goes back because of the music, live performances and the fact that most of her friends prefer Thai discos over clubs or bars.

A second-year psychology undergraduate at a local university, who wanted to be known only as Miss Yeo, 20, said: “I prefer Thai discos because they usually play Chinese songs instead of the English ones we hear at clubs. We can sit down comfortably and play games like dice, which is provided there. They also offer much cheaper drinks during happy hour.”

Echoing these sentiments, another NSF, Mr Ng Z Y, 22, said that on top of the atmosphere, the long opening hours are also attractive.

Mr Ng, who visits Thai discos almost every weekend, said: “Most Thai discos open until very late, past 5am... unlike bars and clubs. Also compared to bars where you have to order pint after pint, Thai discos sell beer by the tower and in bulk, so there’s more to drink.”

However, he added that this is often a recipe for disaster.

He said: “People go to these places already after having a lot to drink, because it closes early in the morning, around 6am, so they come after clubbing or from another bar."

The Thai discos tend to jack up prices of drinks during these pre-dawn hours but that would not deter the crowds, he added. 

"The people who go there already have the mindset to get very drunk, which may cause them to act irrationally.”

REMAIN ON GUARD

Another NSF, 20-year-old Loh Jia Qing, is no stranger to violence in Thai discos, having had three close encounters in the past six months. But he said that they have taught him to be more careful.

Describing one of his brushes with violence, he said: “I was making my way to the toilet when I accidentally bumped into this guy who was in his late 20s. He started hurling vulgarities at me and I apologised but he still continued to get very aggressive. He wanted to fight but I just walked away because I did not want to get involved.”

He added: “I would just be more on guard and aware of my surroundings. I will take more precautions like trying not to offend the people around me. If one party still tries to instigate a fight I would just walk away and find somewhere crowded so that the chances of a fight would be lower.”

But this might not be enough, said Mr Tan Yi Jie, 26, a fresh graduate from Nanyang Technological University.

The electrical and electronic engineering graduate, who used to visit Thai discos three times a week as a student, said: “There is always a chance of getting into a fight even though it’s not your fault. You could apologise and offer to buy drinks to the other party but if they are not in the right state of mind, they could just slash you.”

He added: “There is always a chance no matter how rational you are.”

MEASURES TO PROTECT YOUNG PATRONS

The youths who spoke to TODAY said they feel that violent clashes are rare but shoving and aggressive behaviour occurs on a regular basis.

Owners of Thai discos have also taken measures to make these clubs safer for their young patrons, who make up over 30 per cent of their customers for most operators.

The minimum age varies for Thai discos, but tends to be stipulated at 18, 21 or 25. Mr Fong Kok Cheong, 33, the general manager of Club Aura, a popular nightspot in Orchard Hotel, said that the minimum age for entry to Club Aura was raised three years ago.

He said: “After we changed the minimum age from 18 to 23, the situation became better for us. When we allowed younger people, aged 18 to 20, to enter, really bad fights would break out more regularly, like around twice in a month.”

He believed that it was because younger people tend to act more brashly and irrationally.

Mr Benjamin Khoo, 23, manager of Club Mao, in the Chinatown area, said that there has been a trend towards younger patrons, below the age of 21.

He said: “They make up 40 per cent of our customers. Five years ago there was almost none from this age group coming in.”

He said that the club is extremely strict about gang signs and would even evict patrons who use them. “We have at least five bouncers on duty on the weekdays and seven on weekends,” he said.

He said that the club also does not hesitate to ban patrons. Mr Khoo said: “There will be instances of violence once in a while and we will just ban them from coming straight away.”

However, others such as Club Hiso on Arab Street, have not experienced any serious fights. The club’s assistant general manager Mr Jonathan Tang, 27, said: “Most of our customers are people we are friends with and we have only one bouncer working so there are no serious fights so far.”