Chiang Mai group rallies against Covid-19 vaccines for young school children
A group of anti-vaxxers rode into Bangkok on Monday to demand that the Education Ministry stop forcing school children to take Covid-19 jabs.
The group, Chiang Mai People Protecting Rights, led by Dr Notphoptham Phopthamcharoenjai, began their 900-kilometre journey on bicycles in mid-December.
The Education Ministry is urging parents to allow their five to 11-year-olds to take the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine. However, the group wants the ministry to reconsider this resolution and handed in a letter explaining their misgivings.
The letter was received by a senior Education Ministry official, who promised to pass it on to the minister.
The group said that though the Education Ministry claimed that the shots will be provided voluntarily, that was not really the case.
They said many schools were either forcing the children to get jabbed or imposing other measures like stopping them from attending class or insisting parents pay for the rapid antigen tests.
The group said Covid-19 vaccines are alienating children and affecting their mental status and rights. The group also alleged that Covid-19 vaccines were still at trial stage and could affect children’s health.
The anti-vaxxers said children have a low risk of picking up the virus, and if they do, their immunity is high enough for them to recover quickly. They also pointed out that the vaccine does not really keep the virus at bay.
The group said available data shows that the vaccine has many side effects, so schools should stop forcing students to take them.
