" Legitimate " firearms.

In the days before the Port Arthur massacre in 1996 gun ownership in Australia was a very casual affair.  It was not required to register long arms and many guns simply passed down from one generation to another.  It was decided to cull this proliferation of guns by a huge buy back and the imposition of strict rules.  Owners now needed permission from a landowner to shoot on a property to gain a gun license - and new storage requirements were imposed on those who gained such a license.

Since then, gun ownership rules have been relaxed and it is claimed that the theft of guns is arming the criminal fraternity.   Last year 578 guns were stolen from family properties, and 80% of these were from rural areas - and they were mostly rifles and shotguns.

Gun Control Australia  ( GCA ) is calling for a draconian tightening of storage requirements and these will impose crippling costs on those with a legitimate need for firearms.  The present laws require guns to be stored in "gun safes ", but few would meet the criteria that the GCA is now demanding.

This new gun safe edict would require each safe to be connected with an automatic alarm to alert a remote security company if tampering occurred, and the penalties for any breach of the rules are severe.    They allow for the immediate seizure of guns and ammunition and the imposition of a seven year disqualification for future gun  ownership.   There is even an increased specification for the construction of gun safes - and the demand that they be made of hardened steel panels.

Security alarms involve a big monthly fee and the cost of the type of gun safe being proposed would run into many hundreds of dollars.  It seems that gun theft is usually a result of of thieves carrying out a burglary finding an unsecured  weapon - and many would question the assertion that it is these guns that are arming criminals.   The constant Sydney gun crime involves hand guns - and gun theft from city homes and rural properties is exclusively long arms.

The question hanging in the air - is what sort of compliance inspection will accompany these new law requirements ?    Will every registered gun owner in this state get a visit from the police demanding to inspect the gun safe and test the security alarm ?   In particular, farmers who have a need for firearms will not welcome a huge financial impost to secure what they regard as a "tool of trade ". The question the legislators need to ask is :  " Will this new law have any effect in reducing gun crime ?  " - and the answer will clearly be  "No "!

Our porous borders are not stopping either drugs or hand guns entering Australia and it seems that we have developed backyard engineering by criminal elements who are even producing credible machine guns.   This seems to be an attempt by the legislators to "look good "by imposing a crack down on gun crime, but without any real impact and at the cost of making life more difficult for the farming community.

It is not rifles and shotguns that the criminals are seeking and they are not having problems getting hand guns.    That old adage  "If it "aint broke - don't fix it  " seems to apply !