🔗 Share this article The nation's Firearm Laws: An International Example That Needs to Endure, Particularly After Bondi Following the tragedy of the awful attack at Bondi, Australia is confronting several critical reckonings. There is a long-overdue national spotlight on antisemitism, an persistent worry about national security, and inquiries about how such an event could occur. However, as viewed of a public health expert and Australian Jew, the paramount discussion we are finally having revolves around firearms. A Decade of Warnings and a Successful Response Public health specialists have been issuing warnings about firearms for a minimum of a ten-year period. In the wake of the Port Arthur massacre, Australians united and enacted a suite of measures to reduce gun violence across the country. And it worked. Prior to 1996, the nation witnessed approximately one large-scale firearm incident per year. Over the following years, there have been extremely rare significant tragedies, with none reaching the death toll of the shootings in the 1980s and 1990s. The Bondi Tragedy and the Role of Current Laws Amidst the Bondi tragedy, the nation's gun laws were not entirely useless. Reports indicate the individuals involved possessed with bolt-action rifles and a straight-pull shotgun. These firearms are limited to firing a single bullet at a time, requiring a physical action to ready the next round. Although these guns can be fired quite quickly with devastating effect, they remain far slower and more cumbersome than the large-magazine, semi-automatic rifles frequently used in overseas mass shootings. The casualty count at Bondi could have been much greater if more advanced weapons had been accessible. Preventing another Bondi requires unity across all states. And unfortunately, there are already fissures in the united front. Legislation Showing Weakness Yet, the horrific toll of the attack reveals that existing firearm regulations are failing. Crafted in the late 1990s with the noblest aims, decades have worn away their efficacy. Concerningly, there are currently more firearms in Australia than prior to the Port Arthur massacre, with some citizens in cities owning collections numbering in the hundreds. We have been complacent and it has exacted a terrible price. The Road Ahead: Announced Changes In the time after the Bondi tragedy, there have been numerous announcements regarding new firearm legislation. New South Wales specifically will shortly introduce a suite of measures to reduce the public danger posed by firearms. The federal government has announced a new gun buyback, and there is potential for a countrywide gun database, notwithstanding the inherent challenges of coordinating state and federal jurisdictions. All of this are feasible provided that the nation acts in unison. As noted, when it comes to gun control, the country is dependent on its weakest link. This is the reality of the Australian system – laws in one state are much less meaningful if they can be avoided with a journey across a border. Countering Common Arguments There is the inevitable response that "firearms are not the killers, individuals are". This is accurate in the identical way that planes don't transport people, pilots do. Yes, aircraft require operators, but it would be quite challenging for a pilot to transport 500 people internationally without the aircraft. The horrific violence seen at Bondi would be all but impossible without firearms, and would have been far less damaging if the alleged terrorists had been denied access to the weapons they used. Balancing Need and Security It is acknowledged there are legitimate needs for some Australians to own guns. Farm work or culling pests in rural areas is incredibly hard without them. A total ban of guns from the country is not feasible, as in some cases they are essential tools. What we can do – the imperative action – is to ensure that gun laws are modernized to better match the world we live in today. Australia's laws have long been the envy of the world, but time and distance has taken a toll and the nation is less secure as it once was. It is critical to learn from the tragedy of Bondi seriously, and make certain that future generations are as protected as past generations have been. As one commentator observed after the Bondi events, "things like this just don't happen here". This is true, but solely due to the fact that the country has made concerted efforts to keep itself safe. As nightmarish as the attack was, there is an aspiration that it can serve as the last one the nation ever sees.