Police officers and other officials at Uthai Sawan Child Development Centre after the killing. Photo published by Prachatai (Source: Pheu Thai Party press team) This article was originally published by Prachatai, an independent news site in Thailand, and an edited version is republished by Global Voices under a content-sharing agreement. In the wake of the October 6 mass shooting in the northeastern Thai province of Nong Bua Lamphu that left 37 dead, authorities and the media have begun to reflect on past errors and look for a way forward. On 12 October, bodies of the dead were cremated in three separate Nong Bua Lamphu temples. The Thai Post reported that the ceremonies were held under royal patronage with Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha acting as representative. Panya Kamrab, the perpetrator, a former police officer, subsequently shot himself along with his wife and her child. He was cremated at a temple in neighbouring Udon Thani Province. The Manager Online reported that Panya's mother escorted his corpse to the crematorium. Over the past week, the small northeastern town continued to attract the country’s attention. Officials pursued their investigations and media representatives lingered at the scene, reporting from the field. The police are still trying to understand what triggered Panya’s actions, having found no trace of drugs in his body. According to a BBC Thai report, Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn, the national police deputy commander, believes that Panya was driven by stress due to staggering debt and loss of employment. Pol Gen Surachate ordered that all 180 witnesses to the slaughter be interrogated only once so that they do not have to repeatedly relive the trauma. State authorities and media representatives were early targets of blame. The morning after the incident, the entrance to the Child Development Centre, where 23 children and two teachers died, was decorated and a red carpet installed in preparation for a wreath-laying ceremony on behalf of Princess Sirivannavari. The carpet, however, was deemed inappropriate and removed before the province’s deputy governor began the ceremony. Because government ministers took some time to arrive on the scene, victims’ families were reportedly obliged to wait a long time to get the bodies of their loved ones back from the morgue and receive relief money. Such unnecessary measures in time-sensitive circumstances were not the only disturbances. A CNN reporter and a cameraman were photographed climbing over a police cordon to film inside the day care centre, attracting the fury of the public and local media. Many felt that taking footage inside the centre was not only insensitive and unethical but also amounted to tampering with the crime scene. In reply to condemnations issued by the Foreign Correspondent Club of Thailand (FCCT) and the Thai Journalists Association (TJA), CNN said local staff allowed them to enter and that there were no police cordons in place at the time. The pair reportedly filmed for 15 minutes then left. In a subsequent statement, CNN International's executive vice president and general manager Mike McCarthy insisted that the CNN reporters had asked for permission to enter, but “now understand that these officials were not authorised to grant this permission,” adding that it was “never their intention to contravene any rules.” He added that CNN had stopped broadcasting the report and pulled the video from its website. The CNN crew on the scene, award-winning journalist Anna Coren and cameraman Daniel Hodge, also met with Pol Gen Surachate and apologized. They were fined 5,000 baht each (US$133) and asked to leave the country when it was discovered that they had been working on tourist visas. Cartoon by Stephff: Crossing the linehttps://t.co/2ucEz8VTAo pic.twitter.com/ieT0KdBTy5 — Prachatai English (@prachatai_en) October 10, 2022 In an interview with Inside Thailand news on October 10, Pol Gen Surachate revealed the CNN personnel had entered while the venue was being prepared for the wreath-laying ceremony. At the time, the police cordon had been removed and the gate was opened. Several other people also entered the facility during the preparation period. In addition to CNN, eight local media outlets came under scrutiny for “improper” coverage of the incident. On October 11, the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) issued a letter summoning Channel 3HD, Thairath TV, Amarin TV HD, Channel 8, Nation TV, WorkPoint, National Broadcasting Services of Thailand (NBT), and ONE Channel to discuss reportage containing interviews with the families of victims and the wounded, disturbing photos, and graphics simulating the massacre.