bar top dancing woe

StQwerty SG

what a joke!
what sort of mentally sounded adults will dance ontop of the bar table, or unless ur a lunatic, then i dont have much to say! Laughing
it seems obvious that the minsters in the nday speech were mocking at this bunch of misleaded young adults who prefer to act like a fool other than a mature, sane adults.

in thai, they have the cage dancing prostitutes and in the underground euro or ameris they've bar raping where all the females patron got raped, should we have that in singapore as well?

e|mo SG

i have absolutely no idea abt dat... then which female will visit those bars??

StQwerty SG

didnt i mentioned underground illegal bars?

e|mo SG

ya lah
but which lady will go there?? juz to get rape? isn't dat crazy?? Confused

FireIce SG

u can neber rape the willing…..

Werewolf SG

Ya loh FireIce

perhaps, we shouldn't say rape lah, do not forget in the western countries, the women are of the more open type and there are hippies or whatever too =)
so you MAY find that actually, some are a willing participant...............
Rolling Eyes

LoL Mr. Green

Xiao Long Nu SG

20 August, 2002 13:16

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Strait-laced Singapore is flirting with the idea of allowing club goers to dance on bar tops, a crime for which bar owners can now be fined thousands of dollars.

Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong hinted at the weekend that the city state would relax some of its social restrictions as part of a drive to encourage creativity.

"Maybe we shall allow dancing on bar tops," Goh said, departing from his prepared speech at the National Day Rally, the equivalent of a state of the union address.

But his comments may have come too late for the manager of one downtown pub who was charged last month with allowing two patrons to dance on his bar.

"It is symbolic and I hope it signals impending change in the general night-life industry, in the arts and entertainment," said Dennis Foo, operator of Devils Bar where the bar-top dancing allegedly took place.

Singapore's police strictly enforce the law that dancing be restricted to the dance floor. Breaching licence rules by allowing patrons to dance on the counter carries a maximum fine of up to S$10,000 (US$5,700).

Conservative Singapore, famed for its censorship of racy films and magazines and stiff fines for anti-social behaviour, could use a few "bohemias" where people can gather and be creative, Goh said.

"Studies in the U.S. have shown that entrepreneurship is closely correlated with the level of cultural vibrancy," the prime minister said, adding that creative people needed a thriving music and arts scene, openness and diversity.

The chance to dance on the counter top was welcomed by clubbers and bar operators.

"Bringing back bar-top dancing is the very least they can do to make Singapore more fun and it's not terribly controversial," said advertising executive Alex Shipley.

Xiao Long Nu SG

Operators and patrons back bar-top dancing
By Lee Hui Chieh

BAR owners and patrons cannot wait for bar-top dancing to be allowed at nightspots, a possibility they hope will lead to an easing up of the rules governing club behaviour.

Bar operators interviewed want especially an end to their policeman role in ensuring that patrons do not dance suggestively in a manner that can be viewed as 'dirty dancing', or that performers do not 'interact' with club-goers.

Should bar-top dancing be allowed at nightspots?

Until then, they applaud Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong for raising the issue of letting club-goers dance on bar counters when he spoke on encouraging creativity in his National Day Rally address on Sunday.

At the moment, such dancing can bring a fine of up to $10,000 for the bar owner.

But it is allowed in several top cities.

Said Mr Clark Martin, 35, who runs pubs China Jump and Ocho: 'I've seen it in four major cities - London, New York, Paris and Madrid, in the past 10 years.

'It may be wise to allow it so that we can compete with other countries.'

Regular club-goers, such as engineer Sherryn Oh, 23, feel the present restriction is a fun- killer.

'When clubbing, you want to let your hair down and have fun. Having restrictions on where you can dance dampens the mood,' she said.

But one of the 10 people interviewed yesterday gave bar-top dancing the thumbs down.

Said Miss H. Wong, a 27-year-old advertising manager: 'Usually, only girls dance on bar tops, and it's like a sexual display.'

So far, five bars have run foul of the law which confines dancing to the dance floor that is 'demarcated by permanent fixtures at least 1 m high'.

The latest is Devil's Bar in Orchard Parade Hotel, whose case is pending.

Action against it prompted some readers to write to The Straits Times Forum page last month, saying that the ban was against free spirit and creativity.

In reply, the police said it was for the patrons' safety, as bar counters were narrow and could 'lead to disorder', especially when the dancers were drunk.

Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng took the same line on Sunday, when he was asked to respond to PM Goh's comments, after the rally.

He said: 'There are other patrons in the lounges, and some may not like the idea, or they may be afraid for their safety from any brawls that may arise, for instance.

'So it's not a simple matter of saying, 'Done.' '

However, he added that the police were looking into it, with help from the Public Advisory Panel on Licensing, which makes recommendations based on public feedback.

All the operators interviewed said they would take safety precautions if the rule was changed. They would widen bar tops, install poles or reserve part of the bar tops for dancing only.

Said Mr Dennis Foo, 48, a co-owner of Devil's Bar: 'Operators are most concerned about customer safety because we are responsible if anything goes wrong.'

Mr Martin said to ensure greater control, bars could also hire professional dancers or allow bar-top dancing only after certain hours.

But all the owners feel more is afoot than just bar-top dancing.

Said Mr Simon Lim, 35, owner of Wong San's group of eight pubs: 'PM Goh is sending a clear message, not so much about dancing but, in the context of his speech, about a relaxation of the rules.'

Miss Tracy Phillips, marketing manager of Zouk, hopes it would lead to other changes, such as the extension of opening hours to 4 am or later during festive seasons.

At the moment, nightspots have to close by 3 am.

But Mr Foo feels the best move is for the Government to avoid micro-managing the industry.

He said: 'In the spirit of remaking Singapore, the Government should just lay down the 'no-no' parameters, and leave the rest to the operators for a more laissez-faire approach.'

Devil1976 SG

Ya lor... I like Devil's bar so much... Why must they fucking spoil the fun...? Evil or Very Mad

StQwerty SG

Said Mr Simon Lim, 35, owner of Wong San's group of eight pubs: 'PM Goh is sending a clear message, not so much about dancing but, in the context of his speech, about a relaxation of the rules.'

mr goh did said that to appease younger singaporean in order to ease the tensions cos by the recent economic downturn and unhappiness with the government's policy. but i can tell straight from the faces of mr lim swee say and BG yeo that they r mocking at the idea. anyway, why should the police interferred. the bar goers can risk breakin their neck and do whatever they want...
maybe the hospital and insurance company will be content consider the steep rise in hospitalization and increase cover of insurances for bar-goers!