Care taken to maintain order at ZoukOut party
ST 27 Dec
IN RESPONSE to Mr Kwok Chee Chiu’s letter, ‘Stop diseases, ban parties like ZoukOut’ (ST, Dec 14).
From the nature of the letter, I assume Mr Kwok did not attend ZoukOut and the opinion may be based on The New Paper post-coverage and the translated version carried in the Chinese dailies. This is unfortunate as it was only The New Paper that took this angle out of more than 150 local and foreign publications that attended and covered the event.
This highlights the fact that that story was not an accurate overall reflection of the 23,000 attendees over the 12-hour period, and the pictures featured were of isolated incidents of consenting adults who may have been behaving more intimately than some would consider appropriate but, by no means, against the law. The article may have provoked strong emotions but we assure everyone that Zouk takes safety and managing a party within the legal parameters of the Singapore judicial system very seriously.
Although we respect Mr. Kwok’s point of view, we believe such a call for action, if implemented, would not benefit Singapore’s nightlife industry, tourism (more than 9,000 international guests attended), world democratic standing or economy. ZoukOut has become a national event over the last seven years and a fixture on the international dance and music calendar, considered by many to be one of the best in the world in terms of management, production and entertainment. As responsible organisers, our pre-emptive measures to maintain law and order and abide by licensing conditions included hiring more than 150 security personnel, plus another 40 uniformed police. In addition, ZoukOut is one of the few major events in Singapore where attendees must present photo ID stating they are above 18.
To call for a ban of events like ZoukOut, that promote tolerance, uniting people from all walks of life, regardless of nationality, as the solution to stopping the spread of diseases is in our view misguided and not the most productive way to address the issue. Echoing Forum respondent Dr Wong Jock Onn on Dec 18, it is through better education that people have a greater awareness of how sexually transmitted diseases are spread and ultimately make the right choices.
It was heartening to see all three respondents (Andre Oei, Owen Yeo and Anna Wong) in the ST YouthInk section on Dec 24, all under the age of 21, making concise, analytical and educated statements on whether such events should be banned. They leave us with confidence that the youth of Singapore are more knowledgable, responsible and informed than some may think.
Tracy Phillips
Marketing Manager
Zouk Management