Nonthaburi –
Nonthaburi police are processing assault charges in a matter regarding a female teacher who was recently fired for beating kindergarten students at a private school in Nonthaburi after a group of parents filed complaints at the Chaiyapruek Police Station yesterday, September 27.
Leaked footage of the incident, which was captured on September 23, had provoked outrage among parents and the public during the past week, resulting in some concerned parents filing charges against the reportedly abusive teacher.
A female teacher, later identified as Ornuma “Kru Jum” Plodprong, was seen in the video pushing a three-year-old girl to the floor and pulling her hair while other students and teacher assistants were in the class but nobody intervened.
Additional footage also appears to show the same female teacher using a broom to beat some Kindergarten and grade one pupils and assaulting some of them brutally with her bare hands in the classroom, according to the parents of the children who suffered the alleged abusive behavior.
The outrage had also resulted in a heated confrontation between the parents and Ornuma last Friday before several school executives sent a letter to the Nonthaburi education authorities regarding the inappropriate punishment used by the teacher against young children.
As being stated in the letter, the school had expressed regret and said it would take responsibility. According to their statement they fired the teacher and promised to take disciplinary action against any other staff involved.
Those abused children would be specially assisted by child psychologists to treat and recover them physically and mentally from abusive trauma, according to the school letter.
Meanwhile, the sacked former teacher made a public apology yesterday for her actions, claiming she was stressed about a personal matter and her mother’s ongoing illness.
Ronnarong Kaewphet, chairman of the Justice-seeking Advocacy Network, accompanied fifteen parents in filing a report yesterday, seeking serious charges against Ornuma under Section 295 of the Criminal Code and Section 26 (1) and Section 78 of the Child Protection Act. Maximum penalties could be imprisonment not exceeding two years or fines not exceeding 30,000 baht, or both.
Investigators are in the process of collecting evidence and interrogating parents of seven children who have been reportedly assaulted in individual cases. All children who were reportedly physically abused were delivered for a check-up at a local hospital and will be questioned by the child professionals.
