National —
Thai Minister of Interior Anutin Charnvirakul revealed he is planning to tighten gun control laws by prohibiting everyone, including those with legal permits, from carrying a gun in public, except for authorized government officials.
Anutin referred to a recent brutal shooting incident in broad daylight in Bangkok, which resulted in the tragic death of a female teacher and critical injuries to a student. The teacher was fatally struck by a stray bullet, believed to have been fired by a rival of the injured student.
In light of this incident, Anutin revealed that he has already consulted with the Department of Provincial Administration (DOPA) on Monday, November 13th, regarding possible amendments to Thailand’s gun laws to restrict public gun possession to authorized officials only.
At present, individuals with legal permits are allowed to carry guns in public for self-defense.
The minister hinted at banning this practice entirely, citing the shooting incident, and emphasized that the country needs even stricter firearm laws.
TPN Media notes that nearly 90 percent of firearm usage in Thailand is from illegal ownership, not legal use, and that critics have stated that tightening the gun laws is not the issue but rather controlling the use of criminals having access to firearms.
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This article originally appeared on our sister website The Pattaya News.
