news, local-news, nsw, gun, firearms, amnesty, donato, shooters, borsak, 2018

THE Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party (SFF) and Sporting Shooters Association of Australia (SSAA) have questioned why the firearm amnesty is not permanently in place. The amnesty will run from July 1 to September 30 and allow people to legally dispose of or register a firearm without penalty. SFF MLC Robert Borsak said his party would lobby for a permanent gun amnesty. “We are calling for a permanent amnesty and will be seeking the same commitment from the government, including waiving the $10 registration fee from the firearms registry,” he said. “However, we are pleased the government has heeded our advice for another gun amnesty.” In October last year SFF member for Orange Philip Donato began his party’s chorus to make the amnesty an ongoing arrangement. “The spirit of the amnesty was to get unregistered firearms off the street,” Mr Donato said. “I believe there should be a permanent amnesty.” SSAA Executive Director Diana Melham said whilst the organisation supported the amnesty, it didn’t believe it would resolve the issue of career criminals and their use of illegal guns. “We must focus on the criminals with illegal firearms as criminals by their very nature do not abide by the law, so it is unlikely that they will front up to their local dealership or police station to hand in their ill-gotten firearms," she said. “No one wants illegal guns off the streets and out of our community more than licensed, law-abiding firearm owners.” The SSAA believe economics were playing a part in the government’s current amnesty policies. “From our discussions with the government, it seems reasonable to expect that periodic amnesties will continue to be announced in the future,” Mrs Melham said. “The prohibitive costs involved with a continuous amnesty is the only reason this initiative is not permanent.” Almost 400 firearms were handed to the Canobolas Local Area Command – which encompassed Orange, Cowra, Canowindra, Molong, Cumnock, Eugowra and Manildra – during 2017’s three-month National Firearms Amnesty.

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