Thailand holds royal cremation for 38 victims of day-care massacre

Thailand holds royal cremation for 38 victims of day-care massacre

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha attends cremation ceremony at temple in Wat Rat Samakkhi Uthai Sawan area of Nong Bua Lam Phu province

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) - Thailand on Tuesday held a royal cremation ceremony for the 38 day-care victims killed in a mass shooting last week.

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha attended the cremation ceremony at a temple in the Wat Rat Samakkhi Uthai Sawan area of the upper northeastern province of Nong Bua Lam Phu.

The ceremony, broadcast live, began at 3:30 p.m. (0830GMT) where Prayut was joined by other officials, monks, victims’ families, and locals.

On Thursday, Pol Corporal Panya Kamlarb, a 34-year-old former cop, carried out a gun and knife attack on the Naklang district day-care center housed in the office of the Uthai Sawan Tambon Administration, killing 38 people, including 22 children. Another 12 people were injured.

After the attack, Kamlarb killed his wife and their child before committing suicide.

Thailand observed state-level mourning the following day, with all national flags flown at half-mast to express condolences to the victims' families.

It triggered global condemnation and solidarity with the victims, with calls for stricter gun control measures.

The attacker was a former policeman with a history of drug abuse.

The gunman was “apparently under the influence of drugs” at the time of the massacre, Pol Maj Gen Paisal Luesomboon had said, adding that the investigations would continue.

Kamlarb was discharged from services last year on the basis of drug abuse.

The mass shooting has also triggered a debate about the possession of handguns in Thailand, a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

According to Small Arms Survey data, the Buddhist-majority kingdom has the highest number of guns in private hands among the 10-member ASEAN bloc, with 10,342,000 guns recorded in 2017.

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