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Gun laws and policies, collectively referred to as firearms regulation or gun control, regulate the manufacture, sale, transfer, possession, modification, and use of small arms by civilians. Laws of some countries may afford civilians a right to keep and bear arms, and have more liberal gun laws than neighboring jurisdictions. Countries that regulate access to firearms will typically restrict access to certain categories of firearms and then restrict the categories of persons who may be granted a license for access to such firearms. There may be separate licenses for hunting, sport shooting, self-defense, collecting, open carry and concealed carry, with different sets of requirements, permissions, and responsibilities.
Gun control, or firearms regulation, is the set of laws or policies that regulate the manufacture, sale, transfer, possession, modification, or use of firearms by civilians.
The right to keep and bear arms is a legal right for people to possess weapons (arms) for the preservation of life, liberty, and property. The purpose of gun rights is for self-defense, including security against tyranny, as well as hunting and sporting activities. Countries that guarantee the right to keep and bear arms include the Czech Republic, Guatemala, Ukraine, Mexico, the United States, Yemen, and Switzerland.
In the United Kingdom, access by the general public to firearms is subject to some of the strictest control measures in the world. Subject to licensing, members of the public may own rifles and shotguns. However, most handguns have been banned in Great Britain since the Dunblane school massacre in 1996. Handguns are permitted in Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man which have their own legislation. Scotland imposes an additional licensing regime on airguns, which is not mirrored in England and Wales.
Gun politics is defined in the United States by two primary opposing ideologies concerning the private ownership of firearms. Those who advocate for gun control support increasingly restrictive regulation of gun ownership; those who advocate for gun rights oppose increased restriction, or support the liberalization of gun ownership. These groups typically disagree on the interpretation of the text, history and tradition of the laws and judicial opinions concerning gun ownership in the United States and the meaning of the Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. American gun politics involves these groups' further disagreement concerning the role of firearms in public safety, the studied effects of ownership of firearms on public health and safety, and the role of guns in national and state crime.
The small arms trade is the markets of both authorized and illicit small arms and light weapons (SALW), as well as their parts, accessories, and ammunition.
Gun laws in Pakistan allow for the ownership of firearms in the country by the general population. Pakistan is one of the biggest open firearms markets in the world, and is in the modern era also known for its indigenous gunsmith tradition. The country is famous for producing clones of almost every notable weapon of the world. Although firearms are widely owned, heavy weaponry is permitted only in tribal areas within the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. This includes the circulation of rocket-propelled grenades, short, medium, and long-range rockets, anti-aircraft guns, mortars and other types of firearms.
Firearms regulation in Switzerland allows the acquisition of semi-automatic, and – with a may-issue permit – fully automatic firearms, by Swiss citizens and foreigners with or without permanent residence. The laws pertaining to the acquisition of firearms in Switzerland are amongst the most liberal in the world. Swiss gun laws are primarily about the acquisition of arms, and not ownership. As such a license is not required to own a gun by itself, but a shall-issue permit is required to purchase most types of firearms. Bolt-action rifles do not require an acquisition permit, and can be acquired with just a background check. A reason is not required to be issued an acquisition permit for semi-automatics unless the reason is other than sport-shooting, hunting, or collecting. Permits for concealed carrying in public are issued sparingly. The acquisition of fully automatic weapons, suppressors and target lasers requires special permits issued by the cantonal firearms office. Police use of hollow point ammunition is limited to special situations.
The Firearm Owners' Protection Act (FOPA) of 1986 is a United States federal law that revised many provisions of the Gun Control Act of 1968.
Gun culture in the United States encompasses the behaviors, attitudes, and beliefs about firearms and their use by private citizens. Gun ownership in the United States is the highest in the world, and is legally protected by the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution. Firearms are used for self-defense, hunting, and recreation.
Firearms regulation in Mexico is governed by legislation which sets the legality by which members of the armed forces, law enforcement and private citizens may acquire, own, possess and carry firearms; covering rights and limitations to individuals—including hunting and shooting sport participants, property and personal protection personnel such as bodyguards, security officers, private security, and extending to VIPs.
In the United States, the right to keep and bear arms is modulated by a variety of state and federal statutes. These laws generally regulate the manufacture, trade, possession, transfer, record keeping, transport, and destruction of firearms, ammunition, and firearms accessories. They are enforced by state, local and the federal agencies which include the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
This is a list of countries by estimated number of privately owned guns per 100 people. The Small Arms Survey 2017 provides estimates of the total number of civilian-owned guns in a country. It then calculates the number per 100 people. This number for a country does not indicate the percentage of the population that owns guns. This is because individuals can own more than one gun.
The gun laws of New Zealand are contained in the Arms Act 1983 statute, which includes multiple amendments including those that were passed subsequent to the 1990 Aramoana massacre and the 2019 Christchurch mosque shootings.
In Germany, access to guns is controlled by the German Weapons Act which adheres to the European Firearms Directive, first enacted in 1972, and superseded by the law of 2003. This federal statute regulates the handling of firearms and ammunition as well as acquisition, storage, commerce and maintenance of firearms.
In 2018, the Small Arms Survey reported that there are over one billion small arms distributed globally, of which 857 million are in civilian hands. The survey stated that American civilians account for an estimated 393 million of the worldwide total of civilian held firearms, or about 120.5 firearms for every 100 American residents.
This is a list of laws concerning air guns by country.
The Small Arms Survey (SAS) is an independent research project located at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva, Switzerland. It provides information on all aspects of small arms and armed violence, as a resource for governments, policy-makers, researchers, and activists, as well as research on small arms issues.
In Honduras, the commerce, ownership, possession and use of firearms is regulated. Escalation in crime and the use of firearms in the commission of crimes and homicides has brought political and public discourse to consider regulation of arms.
In the People's Republic of China, access by the general public to firearms is subject to some of the strictest control measures in the world. With the exception of individuals with hunting permits and some ethnic minorities, civilian firearm ownership is restricted to non-individual entities.
References
- 1 2 Domínguez, Gabriel (2016-02-19). "A look at Thailand's fervent gun culture". Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
- ↑ Karp, Aaron. Briefing Paper; Estimating Global Civilian-Held Firearms Numbers (PDF) (June 2018 ed.). Geneva: Small Arms Survey; Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 20, 2018. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
- ↑ "Civilian Firearms Holdings 2017" (PDF). Small Arms Survey (SAS). Archived from the original (PDF) on June 29, 2018. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
- ↑ "Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives, Fireworks, and the Equivalent of Firearms Act B.E. 2490 (1947)" (English translation). Vertic. Retrieved 2018-11-01.
- ↑ Chaninat & Leeds (30 September 2011). "Gun Law of Thailand". Thailand Law Forum. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
- ↑ Zeldin, Wendy (23 October 2017). "Thailand: Amendments to Firearms Law". Library of Congress. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
- ↑ Sattaburuth, Aekarach (12 October 2017). "Gun possession, use by foreigners to be banned". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 10 August 2019.
- ↑ Aizenman, Nurith (October 6, 2017). "Gun Violence: How The U.S. Compares With Other Countries". National Public Radio (NPR). Retrieved 1 November 2018.