Facts of Australian Gun Laws

Initiation of firearms in Australia was primarily due to European settlement. Military engagements, crime fighting, hunting etc were its initial uses. Since January 26th 1788, conflict was initiated by the Europeans with the aboriginals of Australia over animals, admittance to fenced land etc which resulted into mass killing of the aboriginals.

Before and through the 20th century the low percentage of vicious crime was the reason which diverted public concern away from usage of firearms. However, the Australian government was compelled to bring together more restraining firearms legislations with all state government since last 20 years due to the numerous mass killings. It is only since 1980s that gun politics has been a noteworthy issue in Australia.

Statistics state that at present 7,65,000 Australian adults which is almost about 5.2% of the Australian adults 5.2% possess firearms.

The laws regarding the possession and use of firearms in Australia are governed by the State. According to the laws on firearms as grouped under the 1996 National Agreement on firearms, anyone who wishes to possess or utilize a firearm must possess a Firearm License and must be above the legal age of 18 years. Permit to Acquire must be obtained primarily by a person, eager to possess a fire arm which takes a compulsory 28 days period to be issued. Along with this a bona fide reason for the possession of the firearm must be provided. But self defense isn’t considered as a valid reason for the possession of a firearm. It is mandatory to get a firearm registered to the owner by a serial number.

The period between 1984 and 1996 witnessed severe multiple killings. The Milperra massacre deserves special mention in this case which was caused due to a chain of discords among various motorcycle gangs mostly notorious for being an active part of organized crime in Australia. The Hoddle Street massacre, the Queen street massacre and the Strathfield massacre deserves special mention. 1996 visualized a major transformation in the gun control legislation in Australia due to the tarnished Port Arthur massacre in which 35 people were killed and 21 were severely injured when Martin Bryant opened fire on the tourists. The police later came up with a shocking fact that the firearms possessed by him were illegally purchased. Prime Minister John Howard furious with the massacre, instantaneously took the gun laws developed from the report of the 1988 National Committee on Violence and insisted upon the states to implement them under a National Firearms Agreement. 2002 witnessed the infamous Monash University Shooting during which an international student( a member of a shooting club) killed two of his peers. Psychologists bring forth the fact that murderers are influenced by the media sensationalized news regarding previous murders, and they tend to imitate actions previously done.

The state Government and the state police are responsible for the Firearms laws. Since 1996 all states follow the National Agreement on Firearms (NAF). Post 1996 under Howard Government, enforced uniform gun laws on the states.

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