Firearms Owners Call for ‘Prohibited Persons Register’ in Wake of Napier Siege In-quest

The country’s firearms owners want to see a ‘prohibited persons register’ developed that will help guide the licensing of firearms in this country to only fit and proper persons.

The call follows the inquest into the deaths of Constable Len Snee and gunman Jan Moleenar during a Napier siege last year, where it was revealed, prior to the siege, Molenaar displayed the characteristics of someone who was not a fit and proper person to hold a firearms licence.

Council of Licenced Firearms Chair, Michael Dowling, says his members believe our gun laws are among the best in the world, but they can only be as effective as we allow them to be.

“The very basis of our law is that only “fit and proper persons” should have access to fire-arms. What we don’t have is a solid and robust mechanism in place to positively identify those people who are not fit and proper.

“We need to empower professionals, friends and family to raise red flags around individu-als who should not have or no longer have access to firearms.”

The Coroner is recommending Government review the Arms Act in the wake of the shoot-ings – including revisiting military-style semi automatics.

COLFO Chair, Michael Dowling while his members are not adverse to a review, and in-deed, called for one themselves last year, he say “it is important to ensure legislation is not hijacked by emotion.

“Any review needs to balance the benefit to society against the cost and not be an over reaction to a single tragic event.

“While it is understandable for people to look to others or inanimate objects to blame in cases like this, we believe the answer lies not in more firearms laws for those who adhere to them but in ensuring clear guidelines for legitimate users and more emphasis on penal-ties for the criminal possession and use of firearms.

“That means focusing on providing proper mechanisms to easily identify whether firearm owners as a fit and proper person or not, rather than the configuration or cosmetic appear-ance of a firearm.”

He points to law in Britain following a series of mass shooting events which led to a ban on handguns, a move he says has been proven “to have done little to change the rate of mur-der there.”

On June 15th this year, Ann Widdecombe, the UK Minister who took the law to Ban Hand-guns to the House of Commons, as a result of the Dunblane massacre, wrote in Interna-tional Express, “We legislated after Hungerford and did not prevent Dunblane. We legis-lated after Dunblane and it did not prevent Cumbria. A madman is a madman and de-terred by no law.”

Police have indicated they will shortly be recommending policy changes on the Arms Act in the wake of the coronial report.

ENDS

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