Current:Home > StocksA modest Buddhist ceremony marks the anniversary of a day care center massacre in Thailand -FinanceMind
A modest Buddhist ceremony marks the anniversary of a day care center massacre in Thailand
View
Date:2025-04-18 02:45:25
UTHAI SAWAN, Thailand (AP) — About 200 people gathered in the small northeastern town of Uthai Sawan on Friday for a quiet ceremony marking the one-year anniversary of Thailand’s deadliest mass killing.
On Oct. 6, 2022, a fired police sergeant killed 36 people, including two dozen toddlers at a day care center. The shocking gun and knife attack spurred calls for tighter gun controls in Thailand, which has one of the highest rates of gun ownership and gun-related deaths in Asia.
The calls for change faded with time, but were dramatically revived this week when a teenager with a handgun roamed through an upscale mall in the capital, Bangkok, shooting dead two people and wounding five others before being apprehended.
Officials and residents from Uthai Sawan and neighboring communities in Nong Bua Lamphu province, which sits in one of Thailand’s poorest regions, donned colorful traditional clothes Friday at a Buddhist ceremony. They offered food for a dozen monks and prayed together at the local administrative office, which sits close to the now-empty building that used to house the day care center. The center’s operations have since been moved to a school a few kilometers (miles) away.
The low-key ceremony, attended by many relatives of those slain, was labeled only as an event to preserve local traditions, and the religious ceremony was held to “bless good fortune and serve as a pillar of good faith.”
Local officials said they did not want to call it a memorial service in order to spare the feelings of the residents who are still shaken by the tragedy. Many of them shed tears as they chanted the prayers.
After the ceremony, a few attendees went to the abandoned child care building and placed food and beverage offerings at the front — an act that pays respect with the hope to send food and blessings to those who died.
Thongkul Phupadhin, the grandmother of a 4-year-old girl slain in the attack, wept while setting down a offering tray with french fries, popcorn, rice crackers, cupcakes, grilled chicken and sweet drinks. She said it’s still hard for her to come back to see the place.
“I still miss her the same,” she said of her granddaughter, eyes red and filled with tears. “I always go to the temple. I always offer food to monks. Whatever she wanted to eat, what she used to eat, I always offer them for merit-making.”
The 24 preschoolers who lost their lives were attacked while taking their afternoon nap, and photos taken by first responders showed their tiny bodies still lying on blankets. In some images, slashes to the victims’ faces and gunshot wounds in their heads could be seen.
The man who carried out the massacre was Panya Kamrap, a 34-year-old police officer fired a year earlier for drug use. His rampage began at the day care center, and ended when he returned home, where he killed his wife and child before taking his own life.
Kingsag Poolgasem, chief of the village where the victims’ families live, earlier told The Associated Press that he felt they were starting to recover from their trauma.
“The mental state of people in the community, even those who are families of the victims, whose who were affected, is starting to return to normal, because we incorporated help from several things, whether it is by care of groups of neighbors (or) the village committee using Buddhism principles to help comfort their minds,” he said.
“I still worry. I don’t want anything bad to happen again,” he said. “We now resort to inspections, checkpoints, patrols; whether around the village or around the sub-district. We have to take care and aid our people until everything is all right with them.”
veryGood! (4859)
Related
- Pressure on a veteran and senator shows what’s next for those who oppose Trump
- 3 Alabama officers fired in connection to fatal shooting of Black man at his home
- The economy is a trouble spot for Biden despite strong signs. Here's why
- Technology built the cashless society. Advances are helping the unhoused so they’re not left behind
- Paige Bueckers vs. Hannah Hidalgo highlights women's basketball games to watch
- Should employers give workers housing benefits? Unions are increasingly fighting for them.
- Children of imprisoned Iranian activist Narges Mohammadi to accept Nobel Peace Prize on her behalf
- In MLB's battle to stay relevant, Shohei Ohtani's Dodgers contract is huge win for baseball
- NFL Week 15 picks straight up and against spread: Bills, Lions put No. 1 seed hopes on line
- Kylie Jenner's Interior Designer Reveals the Small Changes That Will Upgrade Your Home
Ranking
- The Louvre will be renovated and the 'Mona Lisa' will have her own room
- Puppies and kittens and dolphins, oh my! Watch our most popular animal videos of the year.
- Heisman odds: How finalists stack up ahead of Saturday's trophy ceremony
- 8 last-minute dishes to make for a holiday party — and ones to avoid
- South Korea's acting president moves to reassure allies, calm markets after Yoon impeachment
- Third victim ID'd in UNLV shooting as college professors decry 'national menace'
- The NRA has a surprising defender in its free speech case before the Supreme Court: the ACLU
- Cows in Rotterdam harbor, seedlings on rafts in India; are floating farms the future?
Recommendation
Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Triathlon
US vetoes UN resolution backed by many nations demanding immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza
U.S. announces military drills with Guyana amid dispute over oil-rich region with Venezuela
The History of Mackenzie Phillips' Rape and Incest Allegations Against Her Father John Phillips
Justice Department, Louisville reach deal after probe prompted by Breonna Taylor killing
Brazil’s Lula takes heat on oil plans at UN climate talks, a turnaround after hero status last year
The inauguration of Javier Milei has Argentina wondering what kind of president it will get
Mike McCarthy's return from appendectomy could be key to Cowboys' massive matchup vs. Eagles