Thailand amended Section 1567 of its Civil and Commercial Code in March 2025 to ban all forms of violent or corporal punishment in homes, schools and other facilities, yet the article says such punishment remains prevalent in the country. [1]
The Thai Ministry of Education has allowed four forms of school punishment since 2005: verbal warning, formal written warning, grade deduction and remedial activities to correct behaviour. Thai education rules say punishing students by violent means is strictly prohibited. [1]
The piece says two school incidents show corporal punishment is still common and that Thai authorities need stronger accountability to stop it happening again. It cites a 2020 Thailand Development Research Institute finding that 60% of Thai students had been physically punished in schools. [1]
A June 2025 UNICEF finding said 54% of children in Thailand had been subjected to violent discipline. The article cites that figure three months after the ban was amended into law. [1]
The report places the new ban against a long record of school discipline rules that still permitted non-violent penalties while forbidding physical abuse. It says the gap between the law and daily practice remains wide. [1]
Thailand’s next test is enforcement, as the article says stronger accountability is needed to prevent further school violence and repeat incidents. [1]
