A petition demanding firearms owners not be smeared as terrorists is set hit the required size to be debated in parliament just hours after NSW Premier Chris Minns proposed strict new gun law reforms.
The ePetition, titled Proportionate, Evidence-Based And Consultative Firearms Policy, was just a handful of signatures away from reaching the threshold of 20,000 signatures late on Friday night.
The NSW Government is planning to introduce the reforms to state parliament on Monday, along with tough new protest laws that would give the Premier “extraordinary powers” to ban public assemblies for three months with the judiciary stripped of any oversight, and a ban on ISIS flags.
The gun reforms include new caps and restrictions on the number and types of firearms allowed, and will include a buyback scheme, but angry gun owners have complained they are being punished for the actions of the Islamic terrorists who carried out the Bondi massacre.
The ePetition asks that the NSW Legislative Assembly refrains from associating them from terrorist or extremist activity, and says legislation changes should focus on penalising crime and terrorism.
“Licensed firearms owners in New South Wales are subject to rigorous background checks, ongoing compliance requirements, and strict regulatory oversight. Following acts of violence in Bondi which involved firearms, statements made in public discourse have, at times, created an implication that licensed firearms ownership or firearms legislation is connected to terrorism or extremist terrorist activity,” the petition states.
“Such implications risk misleading the public, undermining evidence-based policy debate, and unfairly associating law-abiding citizens with criminal, extremist or terrorist conduct they do not engage in and actively reject. Law abiding firearms owners support stronger oversight of terrorist and criminal activities and we support stronger penalties for terrorist and criminal acts.
“The petitioners therefore request that the Legislative Assembly: 1. Refrain from classifying, describing, or regulating licensed, law-abiding firearms owners in a manner that associates them with terrorism or extremist activity; and 2. Ensure that firearms policy and legislation is proportionate, evidence-based, and clearly distinguishes licensed firearms owners from criminal or terrorist actors.”
Many Aussies shared the petition, which can only be signed by NSW residents, on social media, and described the proposed reforms as unfair and disproportionate.
“There is a petition to stop knee-jerk gun policy designed only to give cover to the failures of the State and Federal government. It is an official parliamentary petition. Please consider signing it,” wrote political commentator Matthew Camenzuli.
“Sign it for the 1 million law abiding Aussies, including the farmers that grow your food, that should not have to pay for the actions of two savage Islamic terrorists,” wrote another.
“ASIO allows an easily preventable terrorist attack to happen, and they are collectively punishing the entire population as a response by significantly restricting our rights and freedoms. We need new political parties, now,” wrote a third.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has already announced federal gun law reforms, and announced a national buyback scheme on Friday, where the federal government will share 50% of the costs with states and territories, and said he expected hundreds of thousands of firearms to be handed in.
“The terrible events at Bondi show we need to get more guns off our streets,” he said.
“We know that one of these terrorists held a firearm licence and had six guns in spite of living in the middle of Sydney’s suburbs there at Bonnyrigg. There’s no reason why someone in that situation needed that many guns.”
Opposition leader Sussan Ley said she supported a “sensible and proportionate examination of current gun laws”, but Nationals Senate leader Bridget McKenzie accused the Prime Minister of “scapegoating innocent Australians” and said “we are not the problem … we will not, and should not stand by and take the blame”.
Header image: A police officer cuts a rifle in two after a previous gun amnesty (NSW Police).
