Italian students apologise to Thai woman, end viral BTS dispute
The five Italian students involved in a viral confrontation on a Bangkok BTS train have apologised to the Thai woman, bringing the case to a close after police fined the group and both sides agreed to settle the matter.
The development follows a public apology by the Italian Embassy in Thailand released yesterday, July 25, expressing regret over the incident and condemning the students’ behaviour.
The students, accompanied by two supervisors and an interpreter, met the woman, known as Sugus, at Samre Police Station late yesterday, July 25. Earlier that afternoon, she had filed a police complaint over the incident.
After more than an hour of discussions, both sides reached an agreement. The students and their supervisors apologised, acknowledged that their behaviour had been inappropriate, and agreed with the woman to delete all photos and videos of the incident from their phones and social media accounts.
Sugus said she accepted the apology after recognising the group’s remorse. She said she filed the police complaint to protect her rights, and hoped the incident would encourage visitors to Thailand to respect the rights and culture of Thai people.
She added that she hoped the matter would now be considered resolved.
The woman’s father said he had explained Thai culture and social etiquette to the students during the meeting. He also urged people on social media not to harass or criticise the group further, saying they had acknowledged their mistakes and still had several days of activities remaining in Thailand.
Police at Samre Police Station charged four of the students with public insult and fined each 1,000 baht. A fifth student, accused of making an obscene hand gesture, was charged with public insult and committing an act causing public embarrassment. Police fined the student 2,000 baht.
DailyNews reported that after the fines were paid, both parties formally agreed to end the dispute.
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