Gun Control Australia is calling on Tasmania to stand up for strong gun laws.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/mar/02/tasmanians-should-show-liberals-gun-control-and-votes-dont-mix

Tasmania to Relax Gun LawsPlease

For media enquiries click  here

MEDIA RELEASE: 2 March 2018

Gun Control Australia (GCA) is alarmed by Tasmania’s Liberal government move to water down the states gun laws.

Roland Browne, Vice Chair of GCA and is based in Tasmania, he states, “In my view the Tasmanian Liberal Party’s firearms policy is reckless.”

“It is also astonishing because it is being pushed by the party that responded so well to the Port Arthur massacre in 1996, and by a Police Minister who so bravely reformed Tasmania’s storage laws which changes commenced on 4 December 2017.”

Mr Browne further states, “This is the same Liberal Party which moved for a National Firearms Agreement in 1996 after the Port Arthur massacre, and saw the introduction of uniform and tighter gun laws across Australia.”

“This policy will see Tasmania squarely breach the National Firearms Agreement.”

The changes include:

(a)   The Liberals want 10 year licences.  The NFA limit was 5 years (clause 34(d)). 

GCA view: This limit was set because a person’s mental and physical condition can change in 5 years.

(b)   The Liberals want to introduce infringement notices for minor storage violations and do away with confiscations of firearms from owners who commit storage offences.  The NFA required confiscation if storage requirements were breached (clause 44(b)).  

GCA view: There is no such thing as a “minor storage” violation.  If guns are not stored properly, they can be stolen and/or misused. Improperly stored guns are especially a risk to women and children in the home.  This government should have zero tolerance for storage violations.

(c)    They want to extend Cat C ownership to include (non clay) target shooters.  The NFA limited (non clay) target shooters to Cat A & B guns. Only clay target shooters could have Cat C shotguns. (Clauses 6 & 13)

GCA view:  Category C includes pump action and rapid fire shotguns. There is no competitive requirement for (non-clay) target shooters to have Cat C pump action or rapid fire shotguns.  This limitation was imposed in 1996 to ensure the minimum number of rapid fire shotguns in civilian hands.  This move will see a significant increase.

(d)   They want to create a new category of firearm, Category E.  (Clauses 24 – 29)

GCA view:  This, again, breaches the NFA.  Guns that are not in (the current) categories, A, B, C, D or H are prohibited. This can only be a precursor to making prohibited firearms available to those who would not otherwise have access, identified in the policy as “certain specialists”.  This is a breach of the NFA.  No such category of gun or user exists.

(e)   They want to introduce silencers for Category C guns in rural areas. (The NFA never contemplated this)

GCA view: The use of a silencer on rapid fire shotguns means the introduction into the community of the kind of weapon combination seen in the film “No Country for Old Men”. It presents an extreme threat to public safety.

(f)    The “tools of trade” approach reduces firearm regulation to the level of other farm tools.  (Clause 1)

GCA view: Farmers all have a right to own an axe or a shovel.  Use of a firearm is a privilege and this proposal undermines the principle of the NFA that possession of a gun is a privilege and not a right.  

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/state-politics/tasmanian-election-liberal-polleve-plan-to-relax-gun-laws/news-story/8763536d47c8cedfeca336c75b92b6a7

Why Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, should have said more.

https://newmatilda.com/2018/03/01/deadly-silence-australia-important-role-ongoing-usa-gun-debate/

Here are some ways you can support the young people in the US push for gun law reform:

Send a message of support to the #Neveragain twitter feed:

https://twitter.com/hashtag/neveragain

Organise a march of support in your own community or donate to 'March for Our Lives':

https://www.marchforourlives.com

Don't do business with companies supporting the NRA

https://thinkprogress.org/corporations-nra-f0d8074f2ca7/

Send a tweet to the PM

Send a tweet to the Australian, Prime Minister, the Honourable Mr Malcolm Turnbull, calling on him to express  support for the 'March for Our Lives' march on the 24th of March 2018.

Send a tweet:https://twitter.com/turnbullmalcolm

Write letter to the PM

You could write to the PM expressing support for change to US gun law by making the following points: 

• Too many people are dying and we can't just sit back and do nothing
• It may be a domestic issue but that doesn't mean we can't provide support for change
• Australian's have died or have been injured in United States because of weak gun laws
• In 2013, Chris Lane, a 22-year-old Australian baseball player was shot dead while jogging in Duncan a small town in Oklahoma: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-12-03/life-sentence-overturned-for-us-teen-who-killed-australian/8089800
• Last year, Justine Damond, a 40 -year-old Australian woman living in Minneapolis was shot dead by a police officer. The details of her death are still under investigation
• Over 1.2 million Australian's visit the United States each year
• There are an estimated 200,00 American's who live in Australia many who are dual citizens
• Weak gun laws in the United States allow for more guns to move illegally outside of the United States

Postal Address:

Electoral Office

287-289 New South Head Rd

Edgecliff NSW 2027

https://www.malcolmturnbull.com.au

The Hon Malcolm Turnbull MP
Prime Minister
Parliament House
CANBERRA ACT 2600

Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, has visited the White House but has declined to advise Mr Trump about America's gun laws.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/23/us/politics/australia-gun-crackdown-trump-school-shooting.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=mini-moth&region=top-stories-below&WT.nav=top-stories-below

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-02-24/malcolm-turnbull-refuses-to-lecture-donald-trump-on-gun-control/9481124

Australia's gun laws are in BIG trouble!

An independent report commissioned by GCA into the state of Australia's gun laws, reveals that each state and territory has significantly weakened its gun laws.

Years of political pressure from the gun lobby has persuaded politicians to trade tough guns laws for political gain.

What are the major EROSIONS to our gun laws?

Kids as young as 10 and 12 can shoot at a gun club, including the use of semi-automatic handguns

No criminal record checks for existing firearm licence holder who seek to obtain second or additional hunting rifles

High-powered self-loading rifles now available to primary produces and competitive shooters

Semi-automatic handguns still legally available throughout Australia

General public and school children can shoot unlicensed at any gun club without background checks 

The ability to purchase an unlimited number of guns and ammunition

Click here to view the full report

http://www.gunpolicy.org/documents/6936-firearm-legislation-in-australia-21-years-after-the-national-firearms-agreement/file

First Dog on the Moon's somber summary of the gun situation in America.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/feb/19/florida-shooting-i-cannot-even-begin-to-imagine

You can find all about gun violence, gun ownership rates and gun regulation in Australia and overseas by going to this website:

https://www.gunpolicy.org

Compare your country to the rest of the world.