Australia's Gun Laws: An International Example That Must Persist, Especially After Bondi

Following the tragedy of the horrific attack at Bondi, Australia is confronting multiple critical conversations. There is a much-needed national focus on anti-Jewish sentiment, an persistent worry about national security, and inquiries about how such an event could happen. However, from the perspective of a public health expert and Jewish Australian, the paramount dialogue we are now having revolves around firearms.

A Decade of Cautions and a Successful Response

Public health experts have been sounding alarms about firearms for a minimum of a decade. Following the events of the Port Arthur tragedy, Australians united and enacted a suite of reforms to reduce gun violence nationwide. The strategy succeeded. Prior to 1996, the nation experienced approximately one mass shooting per year. Over the following years, there have been vanishingly few significant tragedies, with none approaching the death toll of the shootings in the 1980s and 1990s.

The Bondi Attack and the Role of Current Laws

Amidst the Bondi tragedy, the nation's gun laws were partially effective. Reports indicate the individuals involved might have been armed with manually-operated long guns and a straight-pull shotgun. These weapons can only fire a one round at a time, necessitating a physical action to chamber the subsequent shot. While these guns can be fired rapidly with devastating effect, they remain significantly less rapid and less efficient than the large-magazine, semi-automatic rifles commonplace in international mass shootings. The casualty count at Bondi would've been far higher if different weapons had been available.

Stopping another Bondi requires unity across all states. And unfortunately, there are already cracks in the united front.

Legislation Under Strain

However, the horrific toll of the attack demonstrates that existing firearm regulations are inadequate. Designed in the late 1990s with the best of intentions, years have worn away their efficacy. Concerningly, there are currently more firearms in Australia than before the Port Arthur shooting, with some individuals in urban areas owning collections numbering in the hundreds.

We have been complacent and it has exacted a terrible price.

The Path Ahead: Proposed Reforms

Since the Bondi tragedy, there have been multiple announcements regarding strengthened firearm legislation. New South Wales specifically will shortly introduce a suite of measures to reduce the public danger posed by firearms. The national government has proposed a new gun buyback, and there is potential for a national firearms registry, despite the inherent challenges of coordinating state and federal jurisdictions.

All of this are feasible if the nation acts in unison. As stated, regarding firearm laws, the country is only as strong as its weakest link. This is the reality of the Australian system – laws in one state are easily circumvented if they can be avoided with a short drive across a state line.

Countering Frequent Objections

There is the predictable argument that "guns don't kill people, people kill people". This is true in the same sense that aircraft do not fly passengers, pilots do. Certainly, aircraft require operators, but it would be quite challenging for a captain to move 500 people overseas without the plane. The horrific violence seen at Bondi would be all but impossible without guns, and would have been significantly less lethal if the accused individuals had not had access to the weapons they used.

Weighing Necessity and Security

There are valid reasons for some Australians to possess guns. Farm work or controlling vermin in rural areas is incredibly hard without them. A total ban of firearms from the country is impractical, as in certain contexts they are indispensable.

The achievable goal – the imperative action – is to guarantee that gun laws are modernized to accurately reflect the world we live in today. Australia's laws have historically been the envy of the world, but time and distance has done its work and the nation is no longer as safe as it once was. It is vital to take the lessons of Bondi seriously, and ensure that future generations are equally safe as previous generations have been.

As one friend remarked after the Bondi events, "such tragedies just don't happen here". They don't, but solely due to the fact that the country has collectively worked to keep itself safe. As nightmarish as the incident was, there is hope that it can become the final tragedy the nation experiences.