Bangkok safeguarding students with fences around homeless-haunted buildings

To safeguard the students of Satriwithaya School in Bangkok, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) erected fences around a number of deserted buildings that have been used as makeshift homes by the city’s homeless. This measure follows the widespread online sharing of worrying images portraying homeless individuals occupying spaces on Ratchadamnoen Klang Avenue, near the school.

Countering concerns raised by a multitude of parents regarding their children’s security, Ekwaranyu Amrapan, spokesperson for the BMA, announced yesterday that personnel from the Phra Nakhon District Office have surveyed the area around the school and constructed fences around several abandoned structures nearby. One structure was the Suksapan shop, a government-owned stationery store that was decommissioned in February 2019.

To further improve conditions in the area, the district office commissioned a group of street sweepers last Saturday to dispose of waste littering the area and thoroughly cleanse it. Amrapan specified that the primary concern driving parents was the fact that children were obliged to pass by these homeless communities on their way to catch a bus or while waiting for their parents to collect them after school.

Amidst this, some well-wishers were found providing food to the homeless at night. Speaking to this, Amrapan pointed out that the BMA had designated two spots close by as official locations for arranging food donations.

The first spot, located under the Phra Pinklao Bridge, can accommodate the distribution of food donations to 200 homeless people daily. The second, found in Sake Alley on Assadang Road, caters to the needs of an additional 150 homeless persons daily. He urged interested donors to make use of the online platform forms.gle/2hZzssfChcJtrALK9 to properly organise these charitable activities, Bangkok Post reported.

The issue came to light recently after an Internet user shared a series of images online showing homeless individuals using ramps, staircases, and elevated platforms in the vicinity of the vacant buildings on Ratchadamnoen Klang Avenue as their dwellings. These images swiftly generated a large amount of attention on social media. The catalyst behind sharing these images added the sentiment that…

“Ratchadamnoen Avenue, a place of historical significance and natural beauty, has now regressed due to the increased presence of homeless individuals.”

Additionally, the same individual reported witnessing aggressive behaviour from some homeless people who were under the influence of alcohol or drugs, causing uneasy feelings among pedestrians. Expressing worry for the safety of the Satriwithaya School students, the online user called for people to refrain from providing food handouts to the homeless in this particular area, especially if they intend to gain publicity from their actions.