"Anutin" orders an absolute ban on carrying firearms outside the home — 100%, with the sole exception of state officials while on duty — immediate legal action for violations. Sport shooters are not exempt and must leave their guns at the range. A window to surrender illegal firearms is being considered. Government House is set to be searched. He was startled to learn his wife owns a gun, saying he genuinely had no idea. He told close associates and personal aides who carry firearms that if they are not police officers performing their duties, they are on their own.
Today (11 Aug.), at 12:50 p.m. at Government House, Anutin Charnvirakul, Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, gave an interview regarding the case in which the National Police Chief had revealed that the Prime Minister had telephoned to reprimand the police over former Nonthaburi MP Chalong Riewraeng smoking a cigarette and not being handcuffed while inside the interrogation room of Rattanathibet Police Station. Anutin confirmed that he did indeed make the call, but said it was not only about smoking in the holding cell — he had asked why the suspect appeared so relaxed, given that he had just committed a serious offence. The National Police Chief answered the call and said he had just hung up from reprimanding the station. Anutin added that he had been pushing forward on the firearms issue, and that at today's Cabinet meeting he had instructed Deputy Prime Minister Pakorn Nilprapan to urgently draft a new Firearms Act. He had also directed the Ministry of Interior and the Royal Thai Police to stop renewing all three firearms licences — Por.3 and Por.4, which relate to possession and purchase — suspending those processes until the Cabinet issues a contrary resolution, and Por.12, the carry permit, which will no longer be issued at all.
When asked what changes the new law would bring, Anutin said to ask Pakorn, but that it must involve controls and penalties, and that penalties must be significantly harsher and more absolute.
When asked whether there needed to be a tighter clampdown on carrying firearms in educational institutions, given that a leaked chat had emerged of a student in Chiang Mai threatening to carry out an attack, Anutin said the order had gone out everywhere. During this period, administrative officials and police officers would be setting up checkpoints focused primarily on firearms and narcotics. Anyone caught carrying, as happened on the night of 10 August when several people were found carrying firearms, would face a case in which bail would be denied at the investigation stage — police would oppose bail applications. It simply was not worth it to end up sleeping in a cell. Therefore, do not carry any firearms outside the home. Do not believe anyone who says you need one for self-defence. In most cases, the gun people carry will end up harming themselves, because it is a hot item.
When asked whether ammunition was also easy to obtain, the Prime Minister said the new law would have to cover all related equipment.
When asked how online firearms trafficking would be controlled, Anutin said that since carry licences no longer exist, there is no point debating whether it is easy or hard to control — it simply cannot exist. If it does, it is illegal, and with severe laws the only outcome is prison. The government side would need to be consulted before the law is enacted, and discussions would have to be held with the Public Prosecutor's Office and the courts to seek their cooperation, recognising this as a matter of national importance, and to ask them to consider cases swiftly, decisively, and to oppose bail at the appropriate stage.
When asked about politicians who had declared multiple firearms in their asset-disclosure statements, Anutin said that firearms with existing registered licences must be kept at home only and cannot be carried.
"But for illegal firearms, we are currently studying ways to legislate a mechanism for surrendering them to the state within a specified period, because illegal firearms, or firearms that cannot be transferred — for example, inherited firearms where the recipient is not in a position to legally receive them — should be handed in. There will be an exemption from punishment within the set timeframe."
When asked whether the word "amnesty" could be used, the Prime Minister said he was not a legal expert and was not sure whether that term could be applied, but that it was essentially an exemption provision — once the firearm was surrendered within the designated period, there would be no punishment whatsoever.
When asked whether, even for legally registered firearms, it would be possible to specify that one or two guns could still be carried outside the home, the Prime Minister said no. Even a firearm with a fully valid registration is subject to the prohibition on being taken out of the home. If you are not a state official performing your duties, you have no carry permit. Taking it out of the house is already a criminal offence. You are breaking the law from the moment you think about taking the gun outside. So to say it is a 100% ban is actually inaccurate — it is already a 100% ban, and if you do it, you have committed an offence, and if you commit an offence, you go to prison.
When asked what would happen with sport shooters who bring their guns to a practice range, Anutin said there would be no exceptions for firearms, and the number of practice rounds, as well as the number of firearms used at a club or shooting range, would have to be verified. The range must be the custodian of the firearms. Simply put, if you go shooting, leave your gun at the range and you must register there. When you buy practice ammunition, the quantity must be accurately recorded and matched. When practice is over, the firearm stays there — it cannot be taken home. No excuse will be accepted. Currently people use every excuse to say they had just come from practice, but from now on that will not be permitted. No firearms. Other countries have already done this — some have laws so severe that possession can carry the death penalty.
When asked whether someone who legally possesses a firearm but later exhibits threatening behaviour could have their licence revoked, Anutin said carry licences no longer exist. Therefore, for anyone who possesses a firearm and displays suspicious behaviour, people in the same household and family must be watchful. The law prohibits taking a gun out of the home. You must know the law — you cannot claim ignorance, take the gun out, lose your temper, and then harm someone else. Either way, it is wrong.
When asked whether the Ministry of Interior needed to issue another clear announcement on the prohibition of carrying firearms outside the home, Anutin said the law should just be amended. In truth, the current law is already clear — carrying outside the home is prohibited, the announcement has already been made, and anyone who carries is breaking the law. One of these days he might search Government House too, just to see whether there is anything there.
When asked whether he had already ordered a search for firearms at Government House, Anutin said the order was coming. Close associates and personal aides were carrying firearms. If they were not police officers on duty, then they were on their own.
When asked whether the firearms crackdown would fizzle out like a flash in the pan — currently riding on public sentiment but potentially relaxing over time — Anutin said it must not be allowed to relax. There are government officials in place. Once the matter becomes law, administrative officers are duty-bound to strictly supervise compliance.
When asked whether from now on firearms would be permitted only inside the home for self-defence, Anutin said: "Actually, even self-defence inside the home is not really valid. If you shoot a burglar in your own home, you can still be in the wrong. The law does not necessarily protect you in that situation. Honestly, I am not sure what things have been like before, but I think firearms are not a good thing. Anyone who has one nearby starts to feel they have power over others. If a situation arises that is pressured or provoked to anger, they will do something unexpected. And in the end, who suffers? You yourself suffer, and you make others suffer too. It is not possible to please everyone on this, but what must be achieved is safety — especially for those who are unlucky enough to become innocent victims, law-abiding people, ordinary members of the public, and children. We have to make a choice about what we want.
"Just keep it as a display piece. Take out the ammunition, remove the magazine, keep it separate, and put it in a locked case."
When asked whether the Prime Minister himself owned a firearm, Anutin said personally he did not, but he had owned one previously and it had gone missing somewhere. He had filed a police report and that was that.
When asked whether he did not have a single firearm at this point, the Prime Minister laughed and said: "Right now? I'll let something slip again."
When asked whether the Prime Minister's wife possessed a firearm, as declared in the asset-and-liability disclosure submitted to the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), Anutin said: "Really? I didn't know. Well, she certainly won't be allowed to take it anywhere now."
When asked whether his wife owning a firearm was a cause for concern, the Prime Minister quipped: "I'm worried about myself here — but I've never seen one."
When a reporter asked whether he truly had no knowledge that his wife possessed a firearm, Anutin confirmed: "I genuinely don't know." When asked further that his wife had declared firearms in her asset-and-liability disclosure to the NACC, the Prime Minister said he had never looked at it. When asked whether he now needed to be more careful in case his wife got angry, Anutin shook his head and said: "Did she really declare that? Well, she'll have to leave it where it is, because you can't sell it now either."
Anutin then addressed the progress of the shooting case at Thepsirin School in Nonthaburi, saying the legal proceedings were moving forward, but those involved were also victims themselves. The gun belonged to the grandfather, and both the grandfather and grandmother had been caught up in it from the very start at their home. The perpetrator had also turned the weapon on himself. The focus now was on providing assistance. At the Cabinet meeting a short while ago, the relevant ministries had been emphasised — including the Prime Minister's Office regarding compensation funds, the Rights and Liberties Protection Department under the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Education including its associated funds, and the Ministry of Public Health, which had been tasked with addressing the mental health of those affected. When asked, given that several incidents had occurred, whether there was any thought of holding a major merit-making ceremony for the country, the Prime Minister said: "Just do good deeds."
When asked whether Chalong had claimed in his testimony that he had previously helped the President of the Nonthaburi Provincial Administrative Organisation secure a position as a superintendent during his time in the police, and whether that was possible, Anutin said: "Oh, how many years ago was that? Police Colonel Thongchai Yenprasert, the President of Nonthaburi PAO, is quite elderly now. At that time I had not yet entered politics. But in this era, there is no such assistance."
