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Following the tragedy of the awful incident at Bondi, Australia is facing several pressing reckonings. We are seeing a long-overdue national focus on anti-Jewish sentiment, an persistent concern about national security, and inquiries about the way such an event could happen. However, from the perspective of a health professional and Jewish Australian, the most important discussion we are finally having centers on firearms.

Ten Years of Cautions and a Successful Response

Health specialists have been sounding alarms about guns for a minimum of a ten-year period. In the wake of the Port Arthur tragedy, Australians united and enacted a series of measures to curb gun violence across the country. The strategy succeeded. Prior to 1996, the nation experienced approximately one large-scale firearm incident per year. In the decades since, there have been extremely rare significant tragedies, with none reaching the death toll of the shootings in the 1980s and 1990s.

This Recent Tragedy and the Role of Current Laws

Even during the Bondi events, the nation's gun laws were partially effective. It has been suggested the individuals involved might have been armed with bolt-action rifles and at least one straight-pull shotgun. These weapons can only fire a one round at a time, necessitating a manual operation to chamber the next round. While these guns can be fired rapidly with devastating effect, they remain far slower and less efficient than the large-magazine, semi-automatic rifles commonplace in international attacks. The number of deaths at Bondi could have been much greater if more advanced firearms had been accessible.

Preventing a future Bondi demands unity across all states. Regrettably, we have already seen fissures in the united front.

A System Showing Weakness

However, the terrible toll of the attack demonstrates that current firearm regulations are failing. Crafted in the late 1990s with the best of intentions, years have worn away their efficacy. Concerningly, there are currently more firearms in Australia than prior to the Port Arthur shooting, with some individuals in urban areas owning arsenals of hundreds of weapons.

The nation has grown overconfident and it has exacted a terrible price.

The Road Ahead: Announced Reforms

In the time after the Bondi tragedy, there have been multiple declarations regarding strengthened firearm legislation. The state of NSW in particular will shortly enact a package of measures to reduce the collective risk from firearms. The federal government has announced a fresh firearm surrender scheme, and there is hope for a countrywide gun database, notwithstanding the complexities of coordinating state and federal jurisdictions.

These measures are feasible provided that the nation acts in unison. As noted, when it comes to firearm laws, the country is dependent on its least stringent jurisdiction. This is the reality of the Australian federation – regulations in one state are easily circumvented if they can be avoided with a journey across a state line.

Addressing Frequent Objections

There is the predictable argument that "guns don't kill people, individuals are". This is true in the identical way that planes don't transport people, pilots do. Yes, aircraft require operators, but it would be quite challenging for a captain to move 500 people internationally without the plane. The mass slaughter witnessed at Bondi would be all but impossible without firearms, and would have been significantly less lethal if the alleged terrorists had been denied access to the firearms they possessed.

Weighing Necessity and Security

There are valid reasons for some Australians to own guns. Farm work or culling pests in rural areas is incredibly hard without them. A complete removal of firearms from the country is impractical, as in some cases they are essential tools.

What we can do – what we must do – is to ensure that firearm legislation are modernized to better match the world we live in today. Australia's laws have long been the envy of the world, but time and distance has taken a toll and the nation is less secure as it previously was. It is vital to learn from the tragedy of Bondi seriously, and ensure that future generations are as protected as past generations have been.

A friend observed after the Bondi attack, "such tragedies just don't happen here". They don't, but only because the country has collectively worked to keep itself safe. As nightmarish as the incident was, there is hope that it can serve as the final tragedy the nation ever sees.