Disarmament begins
2009-04-02
Lise Beyers
THIS WEEK, as the final deadline for the renewal of firearm licences approached, hundreds of firearms were handed in to police stations and dealers in firearms for destruction. Tuesday was the cut-off date for applications for the new fire-arm licences. Licensed gun owners whose birth dates fall between November and December, had up to midnight to reapply for their licences. Chaos broke out on Monday morning at Paarl police station, as hundreds of slowcoaches descended upon the station to apply. Police officers were on duty literally until midnight on Tuesday to accommodate applicants. At gun dealer Hugo van Zyl Sports, it was just as bad. Last minute applicants streamed into the store to undergo the necessary short course in firearm competency, before heading off to the police- station. But for many this process was too daunting, and they decided to part with their fire-arms, which must be done before 30 June. Failure to do so will lead to prosecuiton. Weapons can also be deactivated, but only through the police or an accredited firearms dealer. Dennis Schreuder of Van Zyl Sports said that he had been inundated by short-course applicants, as well as those who want to rid themselves of their guns. “As usual, many people left their applications until the last minute. I have stretched myself by doing two firearm training classes a day, and we have been available to the public well into the night. “Those whom we could not accommodate before the cut-off date, were however able to apply for their licence if they had a prior booking for this training.” The controversial Firearms Act was implemented in 2004. Many parties within the legal firearm trade have condemned it as a means of ridding legal firearms owners, such as hunters, of their weapons. Gun associations contend that it is the public’s constitutional right to legally possess a firearm. Another matter of concern is the slow pace at which new licences are being issued. New firearms are piling up in gun shops, as applicants have to wait years for their licences. The hunting fraternity fears that this is killing a tradition which has been passed down from generation to generation. The new act was brought into being to establish a register of legal firearm owners, in order to combat the trade in illegal firearms. In the process, the law-abiding gun owner, is targeted. One irate customer at Van Zyl Sports who handed over the firearm which he has owned for almost 30 years, for destruction, wondered when he would be asked to renew his matric certificate and degree as well.
More
News
|
