BANGKOK: Thailand’s prime minister on Wednesday vowed “preventive measures” after a shooting at a Bangkok shopping mall left two people dead and raised fresh questions about the kingdom’s gun control.
Shoppers returned in dribs and drabs as the Siam Paragon mall reopened less than 24 hours after the shooting—Thailand’s third high-profile deadly gun attack in four years.The shooting at one of Bangkok’s biggest, most upmarket malls will come as a fresh blow to the kingdom’s efforts to rebuild its vital tourism industry after the pandemic.
“Let this be the only time this happens. My government insists we will give priority to preventive measures,” he added, without giving details.Police have charged a 14-year-old suspect with premeditated murder, attempted murder, carrying and firing a gun in a public place and owning an unlicensed firearm.
But past promises of tightening gun laws have not prevented tragedies. The Siam Paragon shooting came just days before the anniversary of a massacre at a nursery in northern Thailand that left 36 people dead. Many firearms are smuggled into the country, but Kritsanapong Phutrakul, a former police officer and now academic, said internet sales were becoming a problem.
China—which sent around 10 million visitors a year before the pandemic—is a crucial market, but numbers are not returning as fast as Thai officials would wish. At Siam Paragon on Wednesday, AFP reporters saw that security was stepped up in some places, with bags being searched—but not on all entrances to the sprawling mall.“It’s very safe here in Thailand, this could happen anywhere,” he said at the mall.
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