Reduce Gun Violence: Support the Firearms Control Amendment Bill !

The Firearms Control Amendment Bill [1] was published in the Government Gazette on the 21st May 2021. Public submissions were initially open until July 2021 but then extended to 4th August 2021, which accumulated over 118,000 formal public comments. Following an overwhelming public outcry regarding proposals to remove "self-defence" as a valid reason for owning a firearm, the Portfolio Committee on Police officially postponed the bill in November 2021. The bill was sent back to the Civilian Secretariat for Police Service for further stakeholder engagement rather than being permanently struck down in Parliament. 

Research shows that there are more reasons that support policy makers’ decision to make self defence an insufficient reason to own a firearm, reasons that triumph over the ones put forward by opposers of the bill. Pro-control advocates frequently challenge the notion that carrying a firearm offers net safety benefits, citing peer-reviewed health and criminology studies which show that victims carrying firearms face higher risks of violent victimization and death than unarmed individuals because the presence of a weapon escalates violent encounters and statistical analysis indicates that  a civilian is significantly more likely to have their firearm stolen during a violent confrontation than to use it successfully to stop an attack.

When a firearm enters a home under the promise of protection, it often becomes an instrument of domestic terror [4]. South African studies consistently prove that the majority of women killed in domestic contexts are murdered by an intimate partner using a legally owned firearm, so removing self-defense as a valid ground for licensing is not an abstract policy change, it is a life-saving intervention that directly lowers domestic homicides and protects families across our nation.

The concerns raised by opponents come from a very real place of fear, and that shouldn't be ignored, but looking at South Africa’s painful crisis of violence today, the evidence is clear; removing self-defense as a standalone reason for gun ownership is about saving lives, and when we weigh the arguments, the human cost makes prioritising safety and life the only responsible path forward. 

Every gun stolen in a burglary or lost to corruption isn’t just a statistic, it becomes a weapon used to terrorize our families, our women, and our communities, research from organizations like Gun Free South Africa and the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime reveals a sobering truth; legal civilian guns are one of the primary sources feeding illegal weapons onto our streets. By ending private firearm possession for self-defense, we can close this pipeline, choke off the supply of guns to violent criminals, and take a necessary step toward keeping our loved ones safe. 

We all deserve to live in a nation where our right to life comes before the prevalence of dangerous weapons. Under our Constitution, gun ownership is a privilege that should always be subject to the law for the safety of all South Africans. Internationally, some countries recognise that allowing unrestricted firearm access under the banner of self-defense only fuels the cycle of violence, so by standing together and aligning our laws with international standards, we can prioritise peace, uphold our Constitution, and safeguard our collective right to live free from fear. 

Behind every illegal gun on our streets is a story that often starts in a legal home [3]. Studies show that thousands of civilian firearms are stolen in South Africa every year, turning everyday household break-ins into direct supply lines for violent gang syndicates and armed criminals. When we buy guns for self-defense, we inadvertently build a massive inventory that routinely falls into the hands of those who terrorize our communities. What was bought to protect a family far too often ends up taking someone else’s child.

A minority of 118,000 people [2] cannot decide the future of safety for every South African family. Clear research shows that more guns in our neighborhoods lead to more tragedy, while decisive firearm control saves lives [5]. Signing this petition means joining South Africans from all walks of life to reclaim our right to safety in our homes, our communities, and our nation.

Sources 

[1] The Firearms Control Amendment Bill

[2] Dear South Africa

[3] HOW TO SILENCE THE GUNS? : Southern Africa’s illegal firearms markets

[4]Disarming the dispirited South African: A critical analysis of the proposed ban on firearms for self-defence 

[5] Firearms Control Briefing Gun control, self-defence and public safety