Australian Gun Grab Goes to the Next Level

Robert Farago

9 years ago

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TTAG reader DM writes:

Australian firearms owners are in for round 2 of the fight over (what remains of) their rights. Not content with being embarrassed after an attempted gun grab was defeated, as we reported on earlier, the socialist anti-gun crowd have decided to up the ante, by recommending a new electronic database that contains information on all firearms owners as well attempting to track the life of all firearms and associated parts . . .

A report by the Law, Crime and Community Safety Council recommended that the new National Firearms Interface (NIF) be implemented and administered by government agency, CrimTrac. Crimtrac is also responsible for management and tracking of data on violent criminals and paedophiles. Apparently, law abiding firearms owners (“LAFO’s”) in Australia who have to pass a criminal background check, are on the same level as those two categories of subhuman.

Already, it’s not difficult to see why this is yet another colossal waste of time and money. But hey, it’s government and should we be surprised?

With sprawling coast lines, a small population and large freight traffic, Australia is a smuggler’s paradise. When you can get 220 Glocks in the post, criminals are making guns at home, guns are coming in through the post with ease, the AFP admit they have no idea how many illegal firearms are being smuggled into Australia and Australian Customs’ history of institutionalised and individual corruption, it’s not hard to see why.

Further, this new database is on top of the firearms registries already in place in Australia, which are essentially a taxpayer funded blackhole for no proven benefit, a security risk, and whose running costs are believed to be between $80-100 million a year. In a laughable attempt to sell the new database, the ABC’s Fact Check (not worth the name) deliberately tried to misquote Senator Bridget McKenzie and claim that stolen guns represented the majority of illegal firearms in Australia. Kind of inconvenient, when the Senate Inquiry unanimously found this to be completely untrue.

Even though the Senate Inquiry’s findings that most guns are imported illegally still resoundingly hold true, the minority that are stolen appear to be getting police assistance and confirm what LAFO’s have been saying for years.

Victoria Police have been forced to admit that criminals had been eavesdropping on their radios and stealing firearms from LAFO’s shortly after attending inspections. Given Australian Police and their outstanding history, be it running guns to crooks or keeping seized guns for themselves, it’s a safe bet that it’s only a matter of time before the radio is compromised and it’s business as usual. This is just the latest in a string of leaks, which have happened in places like NSW and Tasmania, which have compromised LAFO’s firearms security.

It might actually pay instead to follow the recommendations of a report into privacy laws in NSW. The recent “Report of the Privacy Commissioner under Section 61B of the Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998” recommended that firearms registration be reviewed and essentially dumped. The same findings which prompted Canada and New Zealand to get rid of their firearms registries.

Speaking on the reports findings, Dr Elizabeth Coombs said “I’m concerned to ensure that the arrangements for the collection, security and storage access to, use and disposal of information relating to the purchase of ammunition or registration of firearm ownership, address any privacy risks including that may lead to safety risks for individuals and the community.” Given the above examples of just exactly that, Coombs’ can rest her defence.

This latest database initiative can really only be concluded as a futile attempt to again go after LAFO’s, while doing nothing of substance to stop the bad guys. This is also the latest in a string of embarrassments for the anti-gun and anti-self defense crowd in Australia. Just a snapshot of what has been seen recently:

An 87 year old woman bashed in her home

A 72 year old woman bashed in her home by two men posing as council workers

Western Australia Police admitting that their average response time to an emergency incident is now at 20 minutes (you can get a Pizza quicker)

A man was kidnapped and held at gunpoint by four men

A woman was shot in her home by a man who had an illegal firearm

A convicted felon on the Gold Coast attempted a drive by shooting with an illegal on his ex girlfriend and remains at large

Gun grabber extraordinaire Roland ‘Clowne’ Browne calling for a law to get firearms license owners breathalaysed when it’s already illegal to be intoxicated when in possession of a firearm

Australian LAFO’s, it never ends. Buckle up.

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