Gun Policy News
Booming Gun Ownership Triggers Fears for Brazil Vote
12 September 2022
France24
Clutching his bulky black rifle at a firing range in the Rio de Janeiro suburbs, a handgun strapped to his thigh, Freitas proudly repeats one of far-right President Jair Bolsonaro's maxims: "An armed populace will never be enslaved."
Freitas is part of a demographic that has boomed in Bolsonaro's Brazil: since the former army captain became president in 2019, the number of registered gun owners has more than quintupled, from 117,000 to 673,000, as the administration... (GunPolicy.org)
Court Suspends Bolsonaro's Gun Law Over Risk of Political Violence
6 September 2022
Plataforma
"O início da campanha eleitoral exaspera o risco de violência política", o que "torna de extrema e excecional urgência a necessidade" de se restringir o acesso às armas e munições", escreveu Fachin.
O juiz disse ter tomado a decisão "à luz dos recentes e lamentáveis episódios de violência política", sem especificar se se referia a eventos nacionais como o assassinato a tiros de um tesoureiro do Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT) por um agente bolsonarista ou... (GunPolicy.org)
Security Companies in Angola Must Hand In Weapons
2 September 2022
Jornal de Angola
Security companies have six months to hand in the war calibre weapons they use in their activities, against the rules set out in Law 10/14, commissioner Orlando Bernardo said yesterday during a press conference on the balance of criminal actions that occurred in August and September this year in the country.
The official clarified that after this deadline, companies that fail to deliver will do so in a coercive manner. "From now on, the coercive period will start, the... (GunPolicy.org)
Mexico's Bold Move Against Gun Companies
1 September 2022
Arms Control Association
Of 193 member states of the United Nations, Mexico has the fifth-largest number of unregistered firearms in civilian hands, behind the United States, India, China, and Pakistan.(1) This availability of firearms and the violence it enables have major destructive consequences. In Mexico, guns are the weapon of choice in 70 percent of total homicides and 60 percent of homicides committed against women. Guns are also the main tool in homicides of young people.
Gun violence... (GunPolicy.org)
Firearms Injuries and Deaths Increasing in New Zealand
31 August 2022
Radio New Zealand
Data released by police under the Official Information Act shows 10 murder or manslaughter deaths in 2022, up until 31 July. There were 11 in total in 2021.
Injuries are also running at a record rate, on track to exceed 300 firearm-related injuries for the first time. In 2021, there were 298 gun-related injuries recorded by police, the highest ever.
That was despite a year on year drop in the number of firearms-related crimes police have had to deal with.
In 2021,... (GunPolicy.org)
Jamaica and Haiti Swap Drugs and Guns
30 August 2022
InSight Crime
Criminal gangs in Jamaica and Haiti are engaged in a deadly trade: the exchange of marijuana for guns.
Boats loaded with up to 3,000 pounds of cannabis take off from Jamaica's coastline, speeding across the Caribbean to nearby Haiti, where the drugs are swapped for handguns and high-powered assault weapons. The boats return with the firearms, which are then sold off piecemeal or in bulk.
The guns-for-drugs trade, as it is known in Jamaica, is greased by traffickers... (GunPolicy.org)
More soldiers… and more violence
26 August 2022
El Sol de México
More soldiers… and more violence
Although the deployment of soldiers has increased, homicides have not decreased in the country. In some states with a strong presence of organised crime, such as Durango, Michoacán and Guerrero, the number of soldiers has even decreased.
The deployment of the military has increased during the government of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, but it has not counteracted the violence on Mexican territory, as the number of... (GunPolicy.org)
Five Killed in Gun Attack and Explosion in Port City in Ecuador
14 August 2022
Independent (Ireland)
Gunfire and a subsequent explosion has left at least five people dead, 15 injured and several others missing, as well as damaging homes, in the Ecuadorian port city of Guayaquil.
Ecuador's Prosecutor's Office said its agents were gathering evidence to establish the cause and motive for the attack in the Cristo del Consuelo neighbourhood.
Interior minister Patricio Carrillo tweeted that organised crime in Ecuador is now attacking with explosives.
Sunday's violence "is... (GunPolicy.org)
Uruguay Becoming Arms Trafficking Hub Between Argentina and Brazil
12 August 2022
InSight Crime
Uruguay has been making regular seizures of weapons smuggled in from Argentina, indicating that the country is becoming a preferred transit hub for arms traffickers.
In the latest case, ten people were convicted of arms and ammunition trafficking in early August, according to Uruguay's Interior Ministry.
Beginning last November, Uruguayan authorities uncovered a network smuggling weapons into the country's Soriano and Río Negro departments.
In late July, security... (GunPolicy.org)
Dozens of 3D-printed Firearms Sold at Buyback in Houston, Texas
2 August 2022
Fox 26 Houston (Texas)
Houston leaders say they will no longer accept 3D-printed firearms, also known as ghost guns, at future gun buyback events after one man allegedly exchanged dozens of them over the weekend.
"We're going to exclude those next time around," said Mayor Sylvester Turner. "This is a program designed for people who want to voluntarily relinquish their guns."
On Saturday, city officials held their first gun buyback event in Houston. The mayor's office says more than 840... (GunPolicy.org)
2 August 2022
Small Arms Review
Its society beset by civil wars in the last fifty years, Yemen is awash in small arms. Nearly every Yemeni male over the age of ten carries some form of weapon, from the traditional jambiya (curved dagger) to assault rifles, as personal apparel and icons of masculinity. In the remote mountains and wadis, open carry of an assault rifle is not only common and widely accepted, but is considered de rigueur. Even heavy weapons such as the DsHk 12.7 machine guns and RPG-7s... (GunPolicy.org)
NATO Prepared to Intervene in Kosovo
1 August 2022
The Hill (Washington DC)
The NATO-led Kosovo Force (KFOR) is "prepared to intervene if stability is jeopardized" by the Kosovo-Serbia conflict, according to a KFOR statement Sunday.
"KFOR will take whatever measures are necessary to keep a safe and secure environment in Kosovo at all times, in line with its UN mandate," the statement read. KFOR reported that the situation in northern Kosovo is "tense" and under close watch by the force.
Tensions between the two countries have heightened... (GunPolicy.org)
Jamaica to Introduce the The Firearms (Prohibition, Restriction and Regulation) Act, 2022
29 July 2022
Jamaica Information Service
The House of Representatives recently approved the report and recommendations of the Joint Select Committee on the Firearms (Prohibition, Restriction and Regulation) Act (2022).
The Report outlines the recommended changes to the Bill, following the review and deliberations of the Joint Select Committee.
"Having regard to the number of amendments, it is proposed that the original Bill that was tabled on February 10, 2022, be withdrawn and a new amended Bill be tabled,"... (GunPolicy.org)
Panama Destroyed 23,426 Illegal Firearms over Four Years
29 July 2022
Estrella de Panama
Entre el 1 de julio de 2019 y el 29 de julio de 2022, la Policía Nacional (PN) ha destruido 23 mil 426 armas de fuego ilegales. Las armas de fuego fueron decomisadas y recuperadas, durante diversos operativos y acciones preventivas entre la PN y el Ministerio Público en todo el país."Esta destrucción de armas es el producto del compromiso y esfuerzo de los estamentos de seguridad del país, con el firme objetivo de garantizar la paz y la sana convivencia de los... (GunPolicy.org)
Botswana Experiences Sharp Decline in Civilian Gun Licence Applications
28 July 2022
News24 (South Africa)
- About 14 000 civilians in Botswana applied for firearm licences compared to around 35 000 last year.
- Less than 300 licenses were granted after a public raffle.
- Botswana police say armed robbers in Botswana are a syndicate also operating in South Africa.
There was a sharp decline in the number of civilians applying for gun licences in Botswana this year compared to 2021.
"This year, the Botswana Police Service (BPS) received 7 274 applications for licences to... (GunPolicy.org)
Dominican Gun Dealers Scoff at Import Ban
25 July 2022
Dominican Today
Santo Domingo -- In four years, the Ministry of the Interior and Police issued 57 permits to import firearms, although a decree prohibits doing so.
The entity does not know how many weapons have been introduced into the national territory despite the that the law empowers it to establish the maximum and amount that must be imported by each gun shop.
With an unreliable database, as admitted by the deputy minister of weapons, Aníbal Amparo García, the institution... (GunPolicy.org)
El Salvador Arrests Thousands but Gangs Keep Their Guns
22 July 2022
InSight Crime
Almost four months into a nationwide crackdown, El Salvador's government has failed to disarm its notorious street gangs.
It started at the end of March, when President Nayib Bukele revealed the government's official hashtag: #GuerraContraPandillas, or the 'war against the gangs.' The government boasts it has already arrested more than 45,000 so-called "terrorists," claiming these are almost all suspected members of the infamous Mara Salvatrucha (MS13) street gang, or... (GunPolicy.org)
Women Living in Terror Because Their Ex-partners Have Guns
16 July 2022
Instituto de Estudios Comparados en Ciencias Penales y Sociales (INECIP)
During 2021 there were 251 femicides across the country and in 25 per cent of these a weapon was used; there is consensus that possession is often a projection of the power of the person who has it and a latent threat; the speed of justice and voluntary disarmament are key to addressing the problem. In the opinion of Aldana Romano, Director of INECIP.
When mutual friends introduced them to each other during a holiday, Marcela fell in love with Valentín. Although she... (GunPolicy.org)
Read More: Instituto de Estudios Comparados en Ciencias Penales y Sociales (INECIP)
Honduras: 36 guns a day registered in the last 10 years
14 July 2022
Heraldo
Capital citizens are armour-plated: 36 guns a day have been registered in the last 10 years.
Although the sport of shooting is one of the reasons for the boom in gun ownership in recent years, specialists recognise that the main motivation for owning a firearm is self-defence.
With the motto "it is better to have a gun and not need it than to need it and not have it", Juan, 68, has carried his pistol most of his life and, because of his profession, was forced to... (GunPolicy.org)
55% Of Firearms Entering Peru Come From The Illegal Market
12 July 2022
Peruano (Peru)
[Sucamec] plans to destroy more than 3,000 seized firearms.
In 55% of cases the firearms entering Peru come from the illegal market or are smuggled for use in criminal acts, warned Wilmer Delgado, a specialist from the Department of Arms, Ammunition and Related Articles of the National Superintendence for the Control of Security Services, Arms, Ammunition and Explosives for Civilian Use (Sucamec).
Speaking to Andina al Día, the specialist assured that Sucamec... (GunPolicy.org)
