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Following the tragedy of the awful incident at Bondi, Australia is confronting several pressing conversations. We are seeing a much-needed national focus on anti-Jewish sentiment, an persistent concern about public safety, and inquiries about how such an event could happen. But, from the perspective of a health professional and Jewish Australian, the paramount discussion we are now having centers on firearms.

A Decade of Cautions and a Proven Solution

Health specialists have been issuing warnings about guns for a minimum of a ten-year period. Following the events of the Port Arthur tragedy, Australians united and enacted a series of measures to reduce gun violence across the country. The strategy succeeded. Before 1996, the nation experienced roughly one mass shooting per year. In the decades since, there have been extremely rare major events, with none reaching the fatalities of the incidents in the 1980s and 1990s.

This Recent Tragedy and the Function of Existing Laws

Amidst the Bondi tragedy, the nation's gun laws were not entirely useless. Reports indicate the individuals involved might have been armed with bolt-action rifles and at least one straight-pull shotgun. These firearms are limited to firing a one round at a time, requiring a physical action to chamber the next round. Although these guns are capable of being discharged rapidly with lethal results, they remain far slower and more cumbersome than the high-capacity, semi-automatic rifles commonplace in overseas attacks. The casualty count at Bondi would've been far higher if more advanced weapons had been available.

Preventing a future Bondi demands unity across all states. And unfortunately, there are already cracks in the united front.

Legislation Under Strain

However, the terrible consequences of the attack reveals that current firearm regulations are inadequate. Designed in the late 1990s with the best of intentions, years have eroded their effectiveness. Concerningly, there are now a greater number of guns in Australia than prior to the Port Arthur massacre, with some individuals in cities reportedly holding arsenals numbering in the hundreds.

The nation has grown overconfident and it has cost us terribly.

The Road Ahead: Announced Changes

Since the Bondi attack, there have been numerous announcements regarding new firearm legislation. New South Wales specifically will shortly enact a package of reforms to reduce the public danger from firearms. The national government has proposed a fresh firearm surrender scheme, and there is potential for a national firearms registry, despite the inherent challenges of aligning state and federal governments.

All of this are feasible provided that the nation works together. As stated, regarding firearm laws, the country is dependent on its weakest link. This is the reality of the Australian federation – laws in one state are much less meaningful if they can be avoided with a journey across a state line.

Addressing Frequent Objections

We hear the predictable argument that "guns don't kill people, people kill people". This is accurate in the identical way that aircraft do not fly passengers, aviators do. Yes, aircraft require operators, but it would be quite challenging for a captain to transport 500 people overseas without the plane. The horrific violence seen at Bondi would be all but impossible without guns, and would have been significantly less lethal if the accused individuals had been denied access to the firearms they possessed.

Weighing Necessity and Safety

It is acknowledged there are valid needs for some Australians to own guns. Managing livestock or culling pests in many places is incredibly hard without them. A complete removal of firearms from the country is impractical, as in certain contexts they are indispensable.

What we can do – what we must do – is to ensure that firearm legislation are updated to better match the world we live in today. Australia's laws have historically been the admiration of the world, but time and distance has taken a toll and the nation is no longer as safe as it once was. It is critical to learn from the tragedy of Bondi to heart, and make certain that coming Australians are equally safe as past generations have been.

A commentator observed after the Bondi attack, "things like this just don't happen here". They don't, but solely due to the fact that the country has collectively worked to maintain its security. However horrific as the attack was, there is an aspiration that it can serve as the last one the nation experiences.