The horrific attack at Bondi Junction in Sydney has forced Australia into a period of profound national reflection. Beyond urgent discussions on antisemitism and security failures, a critical debate has been reignited: the state of the nation's firearm regulations.
A Legacy of Success Now Under Strain
As a public health expert and Jewish Australian, Dr Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz emphasises that the conversation about guns is paramount. Australia's legislative response to the 1996 Port Arthur massacre has long been held as a global model for reducing gun violence. Prior to 1996, the country experienced approximately one mass shooting per year. The subsequent decades saw a dramatic decline in such events, with none approaching the death tolls of the 1980s and 90s.
Even during the Bondi tragedy, these laws demonstrated some residual effect. Reports indicate the attackers used bolt-action rifles and a straight-pull shotgun—firearms that fire a single round at a time and require manual reloading. While deadly, these are far slower and less capable than the high-capacity, semi-automatic weapons commonplace in mass shootings overseas. The death toll could have been significantly higher with easier access to more advanced weaponry.
The Alarming Reality of Modern Gun Ownership
However, the devastating outcome at Bondi reveals a system that is failing. Laws crafted in the late 1990s have been eroded by time. Australia now has more firearms in circulation than before the Port Arthur reforms. Some individuals in urban areas reportedly possess collections numbering in the hundreds, highlighting a dangerous complacency that has developed over the years.
In the wake of the attack, political announcements have proliferated. New South Wales is set to introduce a suite of new measures, while the federal government has announced a fresh gun buyback scheme. There is also renewed momentum behind establishing a national firearms registry, a complex task given Australia's state-federal governance structure.
The Imperative for National Cohesion
Dr Meyerowitz-Katz stresses that any meaningful progress hinges on national unity. As Prime Minister Anthony Albanese noted, the country is only as strong as its weakest link on gun laws. The porous nature of state borders means legislation in one jurisdiction can be circumvented with a simple drive.
Preventing another Bondi requires this cohesion, yet cracks are already visible. Critics who argue "guns don't kill people, people kill people" miss the public health reality. The analogy is clear: a pilot cannot transport 500 people to Singapore without an A380. Similarly, the scale of slaughter witnessed at Bondi would be nearly impossible without firearms and would have been far less lethal without them.
The author acknowledges legitimate reasons for gun ownership in Australia, such as livestock management and pest control in rural areas. The goal is not to eliminate all firearms, but to ensure legislation reflects the contemporary world. Australia's laws were the envy of the world, but time has diminished their effectiveness.
The core lesson from Bondi is that safety is not a historical accident but the result of continuous, collective effort. The attack was a nightmare, but it must serve as a catalyst to update and strengthen the nation's gun laws, ensuring future generations remain as protected as Australians have been for decades.
