The Swiss are heavily armed. But mass shootings are rare here

Helena Bachmann | Special to USA TODAY

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GENEVA — The Swiss are armed to the teeth.

Only the United States and Yemen have more guns per capita than this Alpine nation of 8.5 million people.

But mass shootings are rare here unlike in the U.S. where the country is still reeling from its latest tragedy at a Florida high school that left 17 dead.

About 2 million guns are estimated to be in circulation in Switzerland, according to GunPolicy. org, which publishes international data on firearms.

Though weapons are ubiquitous here and gun laws are relatively liberal, crime is low. In the past 10 years, guns were used in less than 120 homicides, government figures show.

Switzerland hasn’t seen a mass shooting since 2001, when a gunman opened fire in the legislative body in the Canton of Zug, fatally shooting 14 people before killing himself.

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So, what is Switzerland doing differently?

Vigilance is one factor.

As an extra safety net, the government encourages professionals like mental health providers to report anyone they suspect of being dangerous, and has created a database listing all gun license refusals.

“We check it every time someone wants to purchase a firearm to make sure it doesn’t end up in wrong hands,” said Lulzana Musliu, a spokeswoman for the Federal Office of Police, which oversees the sale and licensing of guns.

For the U.S., 2017 was considered the deadliest year for mass shootings in more than a decade. The runner-up: 2016, which saw 188 people lost in such attacks.

The Florida shooting rampage has rekindled interest in legislation that allows a judge to order authorities to remove guns from a threatening person or prevent a gun sale if a police officer or relative makes the request.

At least five states in the U.S. have adopted the measures allowing for police to remove weapons or prevent gun sales, under what are often called "extreme risk protection orders." Legislation is pending in Congress urging states to adopt more of the provisions. President Trump and Florida Gov. Rick Scott have each said they will review gun restrictions in an effort to keep weapons out of the hands of the mentally ill.

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In Switzerland, the government also banned immigrants from eight countries, including Algeria, Sri Lanka, Turkey and nations of ex-Yugoslavia from owning firearms. This rule stems from political conflicts and hostilities that simmer within these groups, posing “a serious threat” to the safety of our population, Musliu added.

Oversight and legal restrictions only go so far. What also keeps gun violence under control is the sense of responsibility deeply engrained in this safety-conscious society.

“The Swiss use their guns for target practice or hunting. Unlike Americans, they don’t arm themselves to protect their families or commit crime,” Martin Killias, criminology expert at Lausanne University told Geneva’s daily newspaper, Le Temps.

The Swiss Shooting Sports Association has about 3,000 clubs across the country, including a youth section where children as young as 12 learn to handle and shoot a gun safely. Last year, the Defense Ministry contributed about $860,000 for training, and the government donated 10,585 army assault rifles and 930,000 rounds of ammunition to gun clubs.

Swiss history of gun ownership

Since World War II, soldiers serving in the Swiss military kept their weapons and ammunition at home. This gave rise to the famous “gun in every closet” phrase pro-gun lobbyists in the U.S. and elsewhere used to tout Switzerland’s liberal arms law.

But that changed somewhat in 2007, a year after Swiss champion skier Corinne Rey-Bellet and her brother were shot by Corinne's estranged husband, who used his old military-issue rifle to commit the murder.

After that incident, the government ordered that ammunition for army weapons be left in arsenals, although the guns could still be kept at home.

Anti-gun activists argued that this rule was ineffective, because it didn’t apply to weapons owned by civilians — collectors, hunters and amateur marksmen. The mainstream consensus was that Swiss gun owners didn’t need any more restrictions because the existing laws regulating the sale and licensing of private guns were stringent enough.

In 2011, 56% of voters rejected a referendum by leftist parties and church groups trying to ban military guns from private homes on the grounds that existing laws were strict enough.

Contributing: Bart Jansen, Gregg Toppo