An argument between a Thai passenger and a group of Italian teenagers on public transport in Bangkok becomes a national case in Thailand and also forces the Italian embassy to intervene. In the video, which has gone viral on social media, the boys respond with insults and offensive gestures to the woman who had asked them to lower their voices. The students were in the Asian country on a trip organized for the children of public employees with the support of INPS and following the case they personally apologized to the Thai woman who had scolded them on the subway. The apologies, made in a police station, came after a brief detention and a fine (equal to around 25 euros) imposed on the boys for their behavior
“In Thailand we don’t shout”: what happened, the video
The episode takes place on board a convoy of the Silom Line of the Bts Skytrain, the elevated railway of the Thai capital, as the train approached Sala Daeng station. According to the reconstruction published by the Thai newspaper The Nationit was around 7pm when the group got on the convoy talking and shouting very loudly.
The passenger, who was recording the scene with her phone, asked the young people to keep the noise down. “In Thailand we don’t shout.” A girl in the group reacted with a phrase destined to arouse the harshest protests: “Sorry if we brought money into your country”. In the footage, another teenager showed the middle finger to the camera. The discussion continued with accusations of rudeness, insults and vulgar gestures. Even the Thai woman, in the moment of greatest tension, responded using offensive expressions and gestures.
As the group got off the train, some of the boys kept hitting the windows and making gestures at the other passengers. The video, published between July 23 and 24, was shared tens of thousands of times, causing an avalanche of comments against the students and requests for clarification addressed to the Italian embassy.
The apologies of the Italian embassy and the second video of the boys
Today, Saturday 25 July, the Italian embassy in Bangkok published a statement in Italian, English and Thai. The diplomatic headquarters said it expressed “its deep regret” and “firmly condemned the inappropriate behavior” of underage Italian tourists. The embassy apologized to the Thai people and to the people involved, specifying that what was shown in the video did not represent either the Italians or the relations between the two countries.
“The inappropriate behavior of the group of underage tourists does not in any way represent the Italian people,” reads the note. The statement was followed by a video lasting about a minute and a half in which some leaders of the group and one of the boys involved apologized. One of the young men admits that money cannot buy respect, and says he is sorry for having offended Thai culture. The escorts also announced that the student filmed while showing the middle finger would return to Italy as soon as possible.