Real problem: Gun parts and targets on display in a home raided by Thai police in Bangkok on Thursday as part of a police crackdown on illegal gun sales following the shooting incident at the Siam Paragon mall on Tuesday. According to an international database, Thailand has an estimated 10 million guns in circulation — one for every seven citizens, and one of the highest rates of ownership in the region. — AFP
TALK about gun control flare-ups with every mass shooting in Thailand – then fades away. Officials muddy the waters by lumping the discussion with issues such as mental health, drug abuse and, in the case of Tuesday’s tragedy in Bangkok, Internet use.
While the full circumstances of the shooting have yet to emerge as at Friday, this much is clear: A 14-year-old Thai boy walked into the crowded Siam Paragon shopping mall with a gun that was designed to fire blanks but was modified for live ammunition, and left two people dead and five others wounded.
