University freshmen nationwide are expected to join hazing rituals or <i>rab nong</i> ceremonies on the first day of the 2015 school semester Monday, but a growing number of students and authorities are vowing to reform the half-century old ceremony rife with incidents of violence and abuse.
Opponents of hazing -- in which university seniors organise activities and command first-year students to participate -- say the practice now includes ritualistic activities which humiliate, degrade and risk causing emotional and physical harm to others.
It is only in recent years that the violence and degradation associated with the tradition have emerged publicly, with photos of hazing violence leaked onto social media causing a public outcry.
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has condemned the week-long tradition that takes place during new students' orientation. "The physical and mental abuse violates several human rights, and many are turning a blind eye to these harsh realities," said NHRC commissioner Angkhana Neelapaijit.
In 2008 a freshman student at Uthenthawai University in Bangkok died during a hazing session after reportedly failing to comply with orders given by his seniors. He was viciously beaten, and later succumbed to his injuries.
Another incident occurred in 2014 when a 16-year-old freshman student diagnosed with leukaemia was forced to drink an alarming amount of alcohol, then told to submerge his body face-down in the ocean. He drowned.
Thailand has long preserved a tradition of intense hierarchy, and this old-school system continues to prosper, Ms Angkhana said.
A recent hazing-related accident in Chiang Mai on Aug 5 -- in which fireworks blew off the left hand of Nampol Silapapongprai, a sophomore student at Maejo University's Faculty of Agricultural Production -- has increased pressure on authorities to take action. Police said Mr Nampol lost his left hand while making homemade fireworks to set off at a hazing ceremony at the university.
Meajo is among the Thai universities with a strong reputation for what is known as Sotus - Seniority, Order, Tradition, Unity, and Spirit - among students. Sotus is indoctrinated into students to promote respect for seniority, discipline and unity and is mainly applied to first-year arrivals.
"The hazing tradition in Maejo University is the strictest one in the country I have encountered. Seniors force freshmen to take part and if they oppose, they exclude them from university society,'' said Panuwat Songsawatchai, a junior at Maejo University's Faculty of Political Science, who founded the Anti-Sotus Facebook page which now has 28,000 followers.
Mr Panuwat said he was forced to join a hazing activity when he was a freshman despite the fact that he did not want to take part.
After launching the Anti-Sotus page, many Maejo students came forward to voice their opposition to hazing.
But for the first two years after speaking out against hazing, Mr Panuwat said his life was a nightmare.
"Many claim initiation is a process of giving birth to new Maejo babies, and hazing is a symbol of cutting Maejo's umbilical cord, but when I spoke of how terrifying the hazing was, I suffered much criticism and multiple threats," he said.
"Verbal abuse evolved into a mob of barbaric students beating me to the ground. I had trouble sleeping for months out of fear of reliving that experience,'' he said.
Mr Panuwat said he was threatened by people carrying guns and knives, as a warning for "not respecting the law of Maejo as the law of the kingdom". Keeping the hazing tradition undisclosed is part of the oath which first-year students must take, he said.
Many former graduates also join the hazing ceremony while drunk, he said, adding they sometimes unleash jabs and kicks on first-year students for no reason.
''It's impossible to change this culture, it is handled like a cult and it will always be mandatory,'' said Mr Panuwat, adding things would be different if hazing participation was voluntary.
"I cannot brainwash people, or exterminate those who cause harm to make the world a better place. If hazing is able to stand and survive the test of time, this is what you have to accept as culture and tradition," he said resignedly.
Some students back the rituals, despite the bad publicity. Krisada Bhakdee, vice-president of Maejo University's Student Development and Alumni Relations, defended the university's students hazing ceremony as a way to unify the student body.
"Our hazing ceremony creates responsible, caring and humble citizens for the nation, and it is because of this long tradition we can say that we are one of the most unified universities in the country," he told the Bangkok Post.
The university has a strict policy to protect students, and all seniors are told not to have physical contact with freshmen students throughout the seven-day hazing ceremony, he said.
Recently, 15 students were suspended from hazing activities because of violence and abuse.
"The fireworks explosion that occurred earlier had nothing to do with the university, and it was an independent act by the freshman student," he said.
"I have much respect and admiration for Mr Panuwat, who is willing to stand up [because] he is concerned about the human rights violations that may occur," he added.
Meanwhile, the NHRC has vowed to reform the education system to include a human rights programme to ensure students taking part in hazing rituals understand the basic rights of the individual.
"There are still sexual and physical offences being reported in hazing-related activities at suburban universities," said Ms Angkhana.
Some incidents were pulled together and a case taken to court, but there have yet to be any individual prosecutions, she said, adding that appalling acts committed by individuals were never mentioned.
The Office of Higher Education Commission (Ohec) declares it will have zero tolerance for any form of violence in freshmen hazing rituals this year.
Ohec secretary-general Piniti Ratananukul said all universities must apply the new policy to condemn abusive activities. The activities should be voluntary and parents have the right to observe them, he said. Ohec has now created a "4-must" policy for universities during the orientation and hazing periods, he said.
The policy is comprised of the following: all hazing-related activities must be constructive and have a good public image; the rights and liberty of the freshmen and the principle of equality must be respected; there must not be violations against the individual's physical or moral integrity; there must be no alcohol; hazing-related activities must not interfere with learning; and all the activities must be supervised and under the responsibility of the campus administrators, teaching staff and the senior students.
Any staff member or senior student who disobeys the guidelines will face a disciplinary investigation which can result in serious punishment, Mr Piniti said.
Recently, Ohec ordered universities nationwide to stop late-night hazing rituals to protect student safety. The order had been circulated to all universities and will be strictly enforced, he said.