Thailand vows safety for tourists following Siam Paragon mall shooting

Thailand will be directing energy and taking measures to raise the security of foreign tourists, officials conveyed on Wednesday, a day after a fatal shooting at a mall in Bangkok. Tourism Minister Sudawan Wangsuphakijkosol passionately said that the shooting at the Siam Paragon mall in the city was “an isolated incident”.

However, law enforcement agencies will shrink weapons screening at shopping malls and other tourist places, she revealed. On Tuesday, a teenager shot dead two people inside Siam Paragon, a very well recognized shopping centre in the capital city. The victims were a 34-year-old Chinese national and a Myanmar citizen working at the mall. Five people were also injured, involving another Chinese citizen.  The shooter was taken away to the jail.

He had recently been under treatment for mental illness and had not been consuming medication, according to police chief Torsak Sukvimol. The shooting casts a shadow on Thailand’s anticipations for a surge in foreign tourist arrivals under a visa-free programme for visitors from China and Kazakhstan. The South-east Asian country, renowned for its beaches, Buddhist temples and national parks, is prediction to take up to 30 million holidaymakers in 2023, more than double the tally in 2022.