The International Association for the Protection of Civilian Arms Rights (IAPCAR) announced today that Portuguse gun rights group Associação Nacional da Arma de Portugal (ANARMA) have joined the international coalition of 33 associations in 23 countries dedicated to defending civilian firearms rights.



ANARMA’s membership in the civilian arms rights coalition expands the European membership to twelve groups from ten different EU and non-EU countries.

“We’re on the side of everyday people in all countries that wish to exercise their right to use firearms for legitimate purposes, including self-defense,” The Second Amendment Foundation’s founder Alan Gottlieb who serves as IAPCAR’s President said. “We’re very pleased to have ANARMA as our newest ally in the fight against extremist groups and individuals attempting to diminish firearms and self-defense rights.”



Blake Jardim, ANARMA’s President recently issued a statement about his organization joining IAPCAR.



“As a Portuguese gun rights association, we are very proud to be a member-association of IAPCAR due to its long history of being a staunch defender of the right to keep and bear arms throughout the world. We shall stand side by side with other national associations in order to effectively oppose all anti-gun legislation that may be proposed by transnational bodies such as the United Nations or the European Union."



IAPCAR and its affiliates have opposed restrictive EU firearms regulations. They have organized tens of thousands of individuals across Europe in opposition to the new restrictions.



IAPCAR Director Julianne Versnel, who is also the Second Amendment Foundation’s Director of Operations, has submitted testimony as well as testified at the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) meetings objecting to the exclusion of civilian arms rights from the ATT. “Nothing that is in an Arms Trade Treaty should affect a woman’s right to defend herself,” Versnel told the delegates.



The IAPCAR civilian arms rights coalition is focused on opposition to the ATT, which has passed the U.N. General Assembly and was made available for countries to sign on. The ATT does not acknowledge or protect civilian arms rights or recognize the right to self-defense in its enforceable language.



The United States just withdrew from the U. N. Arms Trade Treaty with was never ratified by the United States Senate as required by the U.S. Constitution.

The Second Amendment Foundation (www.saf.org) is the nation's oldest and largest tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group focusing on the Constitutional right and heritage to privately own and possess firearms. Founded in 1974, The Foundation has grown to more than 650,000 members and supporters and conducts many programs designed to better inform the public about the consequences of gun control.