🔗 Share this article

In the aftermath of the awful attack at Bondi, Australia is facing several pressing conversations. There is a long-overdue national focus on antisemitism, an ongoing concern about national security, and inquiries about how such an tragedy could occur. But, from the perspective of a public health expert and Jewish Australian, the most important dialogue we are now having centers on firearms.

A Decade of Warnings and a Proven Response

Health experts have been sounding alarms about firearms for a minimum of a decade. In the wake of the Port Arthur massacre, Australians united and enacted a suite of measures to reduce gun violence nationwide. And it worked. Before 1996, the nation experienced approximately one large-scale firearm incident per year. In the decades since, there have been extremely rare major events, with none approaching the death toll of the shootings in the 1980s and 1990s.

The Bondi Tragedy and the Role of Current Regulations

Even during the Bondi events, the nation's gun laws were partially effective. Reports indicate the individuals involved possessed with bolt-action rifles and at least one straight-pull shotgun. These firearms can only fire a one round at a time, necessitating a manual operation to ready the subsequent shot. While these guns are capable of being discharged rapidly with devastating effect, they remain far slower and less efficient than the large-magazine, semi-automatic rifles commonplace in overseas mass shootings. The casualty count at Bondi could have been much greater if different weapons had been available.

Preventing another Bondi demands national cohesion. And unfortunately, we have already seen fissures in the facade.

A System Under Strain

However, the terrible toll of the attack demonstrates that existing gun laws are inadequate. Crafted in the late 1990s with the noblest aims, decades have eroded their efficacy. Alarmingly, there are currently more firearms in Australia than before the Port Arthur massacre, with some individuals in cities reportedly holding arsenals numbering in the hundreds.

We have been overconfident and it has exacted a terrible price.

The Path Forward: Announced Changes

In the time after the Bondi attack, there have been numerous announcements regarding new gun laws. The state of NSW specifically will soon introduce a suite of reforms to mitigate the collective risk posed by firearms. The national government has announced a new firearm surrender scheme, and there is potential for a national firearms registry, despite the complexities of coordinating state and federal jurisdictions.

All of this are only possible if the nation works together. As noted, regarding firearm laws, the country is dependent on its least stringent jurisdiction. This is the reality of the Australian federation – regulations in one state are much less meaningful if they can be bypassed with a journey across a state line.

Countering Common Arguments

There is the inevitable response that "firearms are not the killers, individuals are". This is accurate in the identical way that aircraft do not fly passengers, aviators do. Yes, planes can't fly themselves, but it would be quite challenging for a pilot to transport 500 people internationally without the plane. The horrific violence witnessed at Bondi would be all but impossible without firearms, and would have been significantly less lethal if the alleged terrorists had been denied access to the weapons they used.

Balancing Need and Safety

It is acknowledged there are legitimate needs for some Australians to own guns. Managing livestock or controlling vermin in many places is incredibly hard without them. A complete removal of guns from the country is impractical, as in some cases they are essential tools.

What we can do – what we must do – is to guarantee that firearm legislation are updated to better match the world we live in today. Australia's legislation have historically been the envy of the world, but the passage of years has taken a toll and the nation is less secure as it previously was. It is critical to take the lessons of Bondi to heart, and make certain that future generations are as protected as past generations have been.

As one friend remarked after the Bondi events, "such tragedies just don't happen here". This is true, but only because the country has collectively worked to keep itself safe. As nightmarish as the attack was, there is hope that it can serve as the last one the nation experiences.