Op-Ed: Thailand bans Grand Theft Auto IV video game

Thailand has banned the “Grand Theft Auto IV” video game after a teen murdered a taxi driver. The teen claimed he was mimicking the game.

The 18-year-old high school student is charged with murder after confessing to the police. He told the police that he was trying to copy a scene from the “Grand Theft Auto IV” video game. New Era Interactive Media, the video game publisher in Thailand, has ordered retailers to stop selling “Grand Theft Auto IV.” They said they will replace the game with another title. The boy allegedly tried to steal the taxi, and then fought with the 54-year-old driver. The driver was then killed. The driver was then put in the back seat, and the boy tried to steer the cab backwards out of a Bangkok street. The teen faces the death penalty if he is found guilty. Bangkok police Captain Veerarit Pipatanasak told the BBC:

"He wanted to find out if it was as easy in real life to rob a taxi as it was in the game…He wanted money to play the game. His parents, who work as civil servants, did not have enough money to give him."

Thailand's Culture Ministry has issued several regulations recently to tighten availability on video games like Grand Theft Auto. The country has imposed stricter age ratings and restricted game playing hours in arcades. Ladda Thangsupachai, director of the ministry's Cultural Surveillance Centre told the BBC:

"This time-bomb has already exploded and the situation could get worse. Today it is a cab driver, but tomorrow it could be a video game shop owner."

In my opinion, I don't think it's right to ban an entire video game because of one alleged incident, when there are hundreds of murders that don't get blamed on other industries or past times.