Dear Beagle Editor, The Federal Government’s three-month gun amnesty is a wake-up call to Eurobodalla Shire
Council to question why gun sales are promoted each year on community owned land in
Narooma.
Stop Arms Fairs in Eurobodalla (SAFE) believes that to conduct an arms fair in the face of government attempts to remove guns from the community reflects poorly on the shire.
In a recent media release our Stop Arms Fairs in Eurobodalla (SAFE) President, Heather Irwin, said: “While the amnesty is aimed at removing illegal weapons from circulation, it is nevertheless
an acknowledgement of the danger of gun proliferation, because the more guns in
circulation, the more likely they are to fall into the wrong hands,” Ms Irwin said.
“Moreover, statistics released last year by Gun Control Australia, and reported in the Sydney
Morning Herald, show that there is a major problem with gun theft in regional NSW."
"According to the SMH:
682 firearms were reported stolen in NSW during 2013/14 and 724 in 2014/15.
Most of those guns were stolen in rural and regional areas from homes or rural
dwellings including farm houses.
"The article went on to say that:
The Australian Institute of Criminology said in its report on firearm theft,
published in 2011, that as little as 12 to 13 per cent of stolen firearms were
recovered. Most firearms stolen in NSW over the two-year period had been either
category A firearms, such as hunting rifles available for recreational shooters, or
category B firearms such as general hunting shotguns.
“In the face of information like this, and now the Government’s gun amnesty, it is incredible
that our council still condones an event which promotes the proliferation of guns.
“We call on the Council, and all councillors, to remove this event from the shire’s calendar
and restore our image to that of the Nature Coast, which so many residents and visitors
know it to be.” Stop Arms Fairs in Eurobodalla (SAFE)
