LPrent recently outlined in a compelling way the reasons why semi automatic and automatic weapons should only be possessed by police or the military.
I thought that I would have a look at the law and I was astounded at how simple it is to get an endorsement allowing someone to possess such means of mass murder.
The Arms Act says this:
30A Application for endorsement in respect of military style semi-automatic firearm
(1) Any person, being of or over the age of 18 years and being an applicant for a firearms licence or the holder of a firearms licence, may apply at an Arms Office to a member of the Police for an endorsement permitting that person to have possession of a military style semi-automatic firearm.
(2) Every application under subsection (1) shall be made on a form provided by a member of the Police.
(3) Every applicant shall permit a member of the Police to take, or to cause to be taken, for the purposes of the application, a photograph or photographs of the applicant.
Section 30B says that “a member of the Police may, subject to any direction from the Commissioner, make the endorsement applied for if that member is satisfied that the applicant is a fit and proper person to be in possession of the military style semi-automatic firearm to which that application relates”.
David Parker on Saturday announced that semi automatic weapons are going to be banned. Good job. Our law will then be just like Australia’s. After the Port Arthur massacre Australia went full hog and bought over a million guns back then destroyed them.
Incredibly Parker’s announcement has resulted in panic buying of these weapons of mass destruction. From Laura Walters and Melanie Reid at Newsroom:
There has been a rush on gun shops, with people “panic buying”, in the wake of the Christchurch terror attack and in anticipation of the Government tightening gun laws.
Following the Christchurch shooting, which killed 49 people on Friday, the Prime Minister promised to tighten gun laws.
Following Jacinda Ardern’s comments on Saturday morning, gun shop owners – at bricks and mortar stores, and online – experienced a jump in sales.
The Christchurch branch of Gun City was busy on Saturday, with people buying guns and equipment.
Firearms owners posted online about “panic buying”, where people were rushing to stores to purchase firearms, following the prime minister’s comments about plans to tighten gun laws.
Gun nuts will hate this.
Coalition of Licenced Firearm Owners secretary Nicole McKee reckons there is a stringent vetting process for firearm licenses. Clearly that stringent that a right wing extremist can get a number of semi automatic military weapons and kill 50 innocent people. Pretty tone deaf is Nicole.
She says there should not be knee-jerk legislative changes. She sounds like any Republican politician that has been bought off by the NRA.
As I type this I am listening to Jacinda Ardern being interviewed on Radio New Zealand and being very careful with her language. Clearly coalition considerations are at play and New Zealand First’s response to gun control changes has not been great.
And Simon Bridges was being equivocal on the change.
But mass panic buying of semi automatic weapons demands an urgent response.
Let’s do this.
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