Thailand to Amend Firearms Act Amidst Rising Gun Violence Concerns

Mr. Watcharapong Kuwijitsoon, Chairman of the House of Representatives' Police Committee and MP for Saraburi Province from the Bhumjaithai Party, announced plans to comprehensively revise the firearms act. This initiative follows recent high-profile gun incidents, including a shooting by a 14-year-old at Debsirin School, Nonthaburi, on August 7th, and another incident where a student brandished a gun and assaulted peers at a prominent school on Samsen Road. These events have highlighted the pervasive issue of carrying firearms in public spaces as a significant contributing factor to large-scale tragedies. In response to Prime Minister and Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul's policy directive, the committee is preparing to convene discussions with the Royal Thai Police and the Ministry of Interior. The goal is to overhaul the entire Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives, and Fireworks Act to implement more stringent and comprehensive penalties. A key focus of the enhanced control measures will be to prevent gun carrying from the outset. The proposed regulations aim to strictly prohibit the public, and even government officials not on duty, from carrying firearms outside their residences. Violators will face severe charges and penalties. Furthermore, the new legislation will introduce provisions making gun owners jointly criminally liable if their registered firearms are stolen and subsequently used in criminal acts by others. An exception will be made only if the owner had previously reported the firearm as lost to the police before the incident occurred. Mr. Watcharapong also reiterated the importance of secure firearm storage, emphasizing that all legal gun owners must store their weapons meticulously to prevent easy access by children and minors. Regarding proposals for teachers to carry firearms for self-defense within educational institutions, Mr. Watcharapong confirmed the Prime Minister's rejection of this idea. He stated that teachers are not designated law enforcement personnel authorized to use weapons, and the correct approach to solving the problem lies in strictly enforcing the new gun law to eliminate public gun carriers, rather than increasing the number of firearms in schools.