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Following the tragedy of the awful incident at Bondi, Australia is facing multiple critical conversations. There is a much-needed national spotlight on antisemitism, an persistent worry about public safety, and questions about the way such an tragedy could happen. However, as viewed of a public health expert and Jewish Australian, the most important dialogue we are finally having centers on firearms.

Ten Years of Cautions and a Proven Solution

Health specialists have been sounding alarms about guns for at least a ten-year period. In the wake of the Port Arthur tragedy, Australians came together and enacted a suite of reforms to curb gun violence nationwide. The strategy succeeded. Prior to 1996, the nation witnessed roughly one mass shooting 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.

This Recent Attack and the Function of Current Laws

Even during the Bondi events, the nation's firearm regulations were not entirely useless. Reports indicate the individuals involved might have been armed with manually-operated long guns and a straight-pull shotgun. These weapons can only fire a single bullet at a time, requiring a physical action to ready the subsequent shot. Although these guns can be fired quite quickly with lethal results, they remain far slower and more cumbersome than the high-capacity, semi-automatic rifles frequently used in international attacks. The number of deaths at Bondi would've been far higher if more advanced weapons had been available.

Preventing another Bondi requires national cohesion. Regrettably, there are already fissures in the facade.

Legislation Under Strain

Yet, the horrific toll of the incident reveals that current gun laws are inadequate. Crafted in the late 1990s with the noblest aims, decades have eroded their effectiveness. Concerningly, there are currently more firearms in Australia than prior to the Port Arthur shooting, with some citizens in urban areas owning collections of hundreds of weapons.

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

The Path Ahead: Announced Reforms

Since the Bondi attack, there have been numerous declarations regarding strengthened firearm legislation. The state of NSW specifically will shortly enact a package of reforms to reduce the public danger from firearms. The national government has announced a new gun buyback, and there is hope for a national firearms registry, notwithstanding the complexities of aligning state and federal jurisdictions.

All of this are feasible if the nation acts in unison. As stated, when it comes to gun control, the country is dependent on its least stringent jurisdiction. This is the very nature of the Australian federation – laws in one state are easily circumvented if they can be avoided with a journey across a state line.

Countering Frequent Objections

We hear the predictable response that "guns don't kill people, 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 captain to transport 500 people internationally without the plane. The horrific violence witnessed at Bondi would be extremely difficult without firearms, and would have been significantly less lethal if the alleged terrorists had not had access to the weapons they used.

Balancing Need and Security

It is acknowledged there are valid reasons for some Australians to own firearms. Farm work or culling pests in rural areas is extremely difficult without them. A total ban of firearms from the country is impractical, as in certain contexts they are indispensable.

The achievable goal – the imperative action – is to guarantee that firearm legislation are modernized to accurately reflect the world we live in today. Australia's laws have long been the admiration of the world, but time and distance has taken a toll and the nation is less secure as it once was. It is vital to take the lessons of Bondi to heart, and ensure that coming Australians are as protected as previous 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 keep itself safe. However horrific as the attack was, there is hope that it can serve as the last one the nation experiences.