Bangkok—
At 11:30 PM, on December 16th, 2023, Mr. Anutin Charnvirakul, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, and relevant agencies conducted a field inspection on the entertainment district in Khao San Road, Bangkok after extending legal nightlife hours to 4 AM.
Anutin urged entertainment service providers to strictly comply with the law including the prohibition of selling illicit drugs, carrying firearms, and providing services to minors under 20 years of age. Moreover, the visitors must not drink and drive, and the entertainment owners need to provide hail-riding services to intoxicated people.
The overall picture after the inspection was that everything was in order and that the entertainment service providers followed the law under the Thai government policy. The tourists need not worry about the safety of their life and property, said Anutin.
Extending entertainment service opening hours would potentially generate more income for locals not directly employed by bars and clubs such as taxi drivers and food vendors as well as increase employment rates. The Thai government aims to support and increase the number of licenses granted to entertainment venues and expand new zoning areas further if there is positive feedback and entertainment owners follow the law, said Anutin.
Furthermore, Bangkok police and relevant agencies would join forces to ensure that no prohibited items such as illicit substances and firearms, and minors under 20 years of age using services, said Anutin.
TPN media notes that Anutin himself led a raid on a venue allegedly not following the rules in Bangkok just before the legal extension of entertainment venue hours, as seen here.
Anutin has also urged entertainment venues to only accept original versions of ID cards or passports from patrons after a very public issue with a famous Thai boxer recently who allegedly took open a minor from a Bangkok night club. The suspect has pointed out that the victim allegedly lied about her age by using a copy of a fake ID to get into a venue only legally available for adults. You can read more about that here.
