As someone who’s never had a job in law enforcement, my knowledge of how rule-breaking police officers are dealt with by their superiors has been gleaned from the world of movies and TV. I can only assume that when a cop crosses the line, they first get yelled at by an irascible chief or sergeant or older balding and/or moustached guy. Then if they don’t throw their badge and gun down on a desk and storm out to take the law into their own hands, they get shipped off to California or kindergarten, get paired up with a staid veteran cop of a different race who’s this close to retiring, or get taken off the road and put on permanent radio duty.

It was quite shocking to discover exact how harsh the penalties can be when real-life police officers decide to bend the rules. Officers in Bangkok, Thailand’s Crime Suppression Division who show up to work late, park in the wrong spot, or receive complaints from civilians will now be forced to wear a bright pink Hello Kitty armband on their uniforms. Or in the words of acting CSD Chief Pongpat Chayaphan:

Because what could possibly go wrong when you make a gun-toting macho cop feel guilty and ashamed while questioning his masculinity by comparing him to a little girl?

If you’re concerned that people who stop by a Bangkok police station might be a little confused about the meaning of the new armband and think that Sanrio is sponsoring another military coup, don’t worry. Any cop who’s ordered to wear the armband isn’t allowed to tell anyone why they’re wearing it. Or as Pongpat explains:

Of course, those guesses could include “Took a huge bribe from a guy running a massive brothel stocked with underage girls” or “Beat the living shit out of some anti-government protestors,” but realistically, those offenses would be better symbolized by a Badtz-Maru armband.

If the Hello Kitty armbands fail to solve their discipline problems, I’m hoping that the Bangkok police department will also take their cues from cop movies and consider replacing their all-too-flawed human officers with the future of super-cute law enforcement: Hello Kitty robots.