Officials are responding to violence among vocational school students by creating more punitive measures, the Office of the Vocational Education Commission (Ovec) has announced.
The new measures follow a fatal bus shooting last week on Vibhavadi-Rangsit Road that left one Thaivichitsilp Art School student and a female bystander dead.
Police suspect that shooting was carried out by students at rival Don Muang Technical School. The legacy of violence between students from the rival schools has left many commuters and residents in the area fearing for their safety during their daily travels, the Bangkok Post noted in a special report.
“Our existing measures aren’t tough enough, which explains why we are still unable to solve the student brawl problem,” Ovec secretary-general Chaipreuk Serirak said after a meeting yesterday with vocational institution executives, the Post reported.
Ovec, together with vocational school representatives is looking to implement new punishments in schools across the country as well as creating preventive measures such as random weapons searches. Ovec also asked schools to draw up lists of violent student groups and invite their parents to “discuss how to help prevent future student brawls.”
The Education Ministry has also asked the Army Engineer Department to assist by providing training for students who need to be disciplined.
