Would you buy yogurt drink from a teen selling it at an intersection because they were wearing a school uniform? Yogurt drink dealers across Isaan train teenagers who are no longer students to dress up in a school uniform to increase sales. Do people passing by tend to buy out of pity?
Condemnation of the gruesome attack launched by a former policeman at a Nong Bua Lamphu childcare center was so strong that no temple in the community would cremate his body. The Isaan Record went to the site to talk to several people who could shed some light on the situation. Some said the mass shooter had been a good student who was admired by his community. What happened to him? One of his neighbors said the shooter had complained about being discharged from the police force. However, it was unclear whether he was actually guilty of drug possession. The stress from the criminal proceedings, plus other troubles from his personal life, might have been triggers to one of Thailand’s greatest tragedies.
The motive behind the mass shooting at Nong Bua Lamphu which claimed 36 innocent lives is still a mystery. Some say it was due to stress. Some blame it on drugs. Some say it was triggered by a quarrel. The attacker is no longer around to reveal what exactly drove him to commit such a horrendous crime. The Isaan Record is at the site and talked to several people who might shed some light on this tragedy.
There has always been a distressing gap in the quality of education in Thailand. But the COVID-19 epidemic has exposed and exacerbated the digital gap in the country. In this latest piece, Mark S. Cogan highlights how the digital gap is leaving the most vulnerable behind and recommends that Bangkok make a real commitment to building a modern education infrastructure.
It's a cliche to say that a given country is at a "crossroad," but in this case Thailand really is. Do the elders have the wisdom to hear what the younger is demanding and negotiate a very different kind of future for the country?
When the canteen lunches in several schools across the country were found to be contaminated with pesticide residue, organic farmers in Kalasin province took action.
A small school in Nong Khai Province is setting an example in adhering to Thailand's human rights obligations seeing its Lao pupils become student leaders. But hundreds of thousands of other migrant students are left unschooled.
