Urgent gun law overhaul would boost Albanese’s credibility

2 months ago 4

Attention Prime Minister Albanese and all state premiers – strike while the iron is hot. Start off with the premise that any gun possession or ownership is illegal (“Port Arthur firearms deal on the table after carnage”, December 16). Then allow only very limited and specific exceptions, like for active police and military. Maybe allow residents in gazetted feral pest areas one weapon suited to hunting that pest. Maybe allow gun club members to store guns on club premises (which have to be counted daily). Maybe allow collectors to have weapons, as long as they are certified to have been irreversibly disabled. Ignore the squeals of the gun lobby and vested interests. You’ve failed us on gambling, Mr Albanese, so here is your opportunity to restore lost credibility. Mike Salon, Darlinghurst

What is the answer to Jacqueline Maley’s question, in light of the horrific Bondi shootings (“We had guns under control, right?” December 16)? Despite the successful changes to gun laws after Port Arthur, we now have multiple murders committed with multiple legally registered weapons. I suggest it is time for a basic resetting of the values that define Australia, and not just a reworking of the legislation that followed Port Arthur. The right to bear arms should only apply to officers of the state. Only in exceptional circumstances should civilians be permitted to own weapons, like people in the farming community for purposes such as vermin control. People who wish to use weapons for recreational purposes, like target shooting, must be strictly vetted and any weapons need to be stored in approved safety facilities on club premises only. Owning deadly weapons is not a human right. James Archibald, Enmore

Someone please acknowledge the role of the deputy leader of the Coalition, Tim Fisher, and the leader of the Labor opposition, Kim Beazley, in the groundbreaking 1996 gun laws (“An unfamiliar moment cries for leadership”, December 16). They were not John Howard’s laws alone. They were a reflection of the way our democracy can work for the good of all. The credit is given to John Howard, but he stood no chance without support from these two men. Take note, Sussan Ley, you have an important role to play here, and it’s not hurling petrol on the blaze. Maralyn Lawson, Greenwich

Canada deems alcohol to be such a danger to its population that only provincial government-owned stores, as in Quebec and Ontario, can sell spirits, though beer and wine are more widely available. It’s also profitable for government coffers. Other Canadian provinces have varying controls. Given that guns are arguably more dangerous than liquor and that Australian gun licensing systems are widely deemed to require renovation, is it time for guns to be only sold and registered through Australian state and territory government stores? By tying sales closer to licensing, there may be less opportunity to stretch the laws. George Cochrane, Queens Park

Gun owners often say “the gun is not the problem, it’s the person carrying it”, much as those who state the actions of a cold-blooded killer were “out of character”. Both of opinions are delusional and dangerous. John Cotterill, Kingsford

Walter McKenzie suggests we should follow Singapore when redesigning our gun laws (Letters, December 16). The difference, of course, is that Singapore has few feral animals, even though I understand that the story about the last tiger being shot under the billiard table at Raffles hotel is apocryphal. David Swain, Glenhaven

Police at the memorial at Bondi Pavilion.

What are the chances that governments will keep us safe from firearm violence while the major parties pocket large gun lobby donations? And why are government gun advisory bodies so heavily stacked with gun lobbyists? It seems the gun lobby gets value for money, while the community bears the real cost in destroyed lives. Frank Noakes, Forest Glen

Former PM John Howard might well criticise Anthony Albanese over the Bondi massacre, but he should be reminded that it was under his gun laws that one of the killers could legally acquire six guns (“Changes to gun laws are a diversion, says Howard”, December 16). Ray Armstrong, Tweed Heads

How do new gun laws stop antisemitism? Clive Powell Northbridge

Height of hypocrisy

The hypocrisy of the Israeli president is astounding (“Netanyahu accuses Albanese of failing to curb antisemitism”, December 16). The rise in antisemitism over the past two years is at least partly attributable to his mass killing of Palestinians. And he has the hide to blame Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for the Bondi tragedy. We are mourning the senseless killing of Jewish Australians and don’t need that sort of accusation from the man who is so much more responsible for the tragedy than our prime minister. Mind your own business Mr Netanyahu, and leave us to care for and console our Jewish community at this desperately sad time. Ken Butler, Mount Colah

Benjamin Netanyahu’s response to the tragedy at Bondi is typically self-righteous and self-exculpating. Evil begets evil and Netanyahu’s attempts to eradicate Palestinian civilians was bound, ultimately, to generate retaliatory acts. Netanyahu, an indicted war criminal, and his “moral” IDF should self-reflect instead of attributing blame anywhere but where it should be. Australians have immense sympathy not only for all Jews, particularly those who have suffered in Australia, but we have equal sympathy for the suffering of innocent Palestinians. Are we not all human beings, entitled to live together in mutual respect and kindness, without hate? Yvonne Piper, Opossum Bay (Tas)

A Palestinian woman carrying her child walks past a destroyed mosque in Gaza City.

Like everyone, I am still reeling, horrified by Bondi’s terror attack. I truly believe that the behaviour of Israel’s government, particularly Netanyahu, has given permission to hate to people who may have harboured some antisemitism but kept it hidden. No thinking person can see his slaughter and starvation of civilians and children in Gaza without real concern. Many Jewish friends I have spoken with agree with me. Netanyahu has set back the Jewish cause decades. Michelle McDonald, Lilyfield

If Netanyahu says that our PM is to blame for the vile attack at Bondi, then he must be to blame for the attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, seeing as he was prime minister at the time. Tim Cremen, Windang

Antisemitism here to stay

At the age of 14, I remember being called a “dirty Jew” while being kicked in the head by an 18-year-old, as the teacher on playground duty watched on. I realised then that antisemitism would never be eradicated. It had existed for centuries before Shakespeare depicted Shylock demanding his pound of flesh, and it will be handed down over generations for more centuries to come. But so long as it remains beneath society’s surface it can do no more harm than perhaps stop you getting that job you wanted, or maybe preclude you being a member of that golf club you wanted to join. It’s when antisemitism is permitted to break the surface, when all those who harboured their prejudices in secret feel they have the right to express those feelings in the open, that it becomes dangerous, as happened at Bondi. Governments who wish to protect their Jewish citizens should look to the country where the worst form of antisemitism was once practised: Germany. There, anyone who today openly engages in antisemitism risks very heavy fines and imprisonment. Had those neo-Nazis who stood last month before the NSW Parliament House instead chosen to stand before the Reichstadt, they would have been marched off to serve five years in prison. For what it’s worth, I offer my advice to the PM and premier: Don’t try to get rid of antisemitism, it’s an impossible task. Just pass punitive laws that will ensure it remains a filthy, unfathomable secret practised underground. At least there it’s unlikely to kill you. Danny Sankey, North Willoughby

The Bondi murders have brought renewed calls for the government to do more to curb antisemitism (“PM pressed to take action on antisemitism”, December 16). This can be done either by suppressing expressions of it, or by addressing its root causes. The first only requires increased enforcement, but the second requires an understanding of why antisemitism is such a long-standing and ongoing sentiment. The answer to this is elusive, so the former solution is the only option. Consequently, antisemitic behaviour will indeed be increasingly suppressed, but antisemitic beliefs will quietly endure. Allen Greer, Sydney

The problem with Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism Jillian Segal’s report was that it went too far in its otherwise completely justified concerns about rising antisemitism. Cutting funding from universities and cultural institutions that do not sufficiently combat antisemitism, in accordance with the report’s contested definition of it, was unacceptable to many people. That does not mean that Australians who disagreed with the report were not listening, or did not care about antisemitism. The same applies to people who attended pro-Palestine protests because they disagreed with the war in Gaza. We all need to work very hard to fight antisemitism, but blaming the government is misguided. Matthew Flattery, Castle Cove

Special envoy to combat antisemitism, Jillian Segal, after handing her report on antisemitism to the federal government in July.

It is absurd political posturing to blame Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for the Bondi attack. The father and son assassins would have known, expected, even sought to die at the scene, or have expected to spend the rest of their lives in prison. They would not have been stopped by the defunding of universities, muzzling the ABC or restricting free speech and the right to protest. Antisemitism, Islamophobia and racism are complex issues, entangled with politics, culture and fear. The hero and role model in the Bondi attack is Ahmed al Ahmed, the Australian citizen of Syrian and Muslim background, who acted fearlessly to save human lives. He is the person who best portrayed what I would like to think are Australian values. Tom Dobinson, Tweed Heads

Hatred is blind

Good and evil have no political, racial or religious allegiances. In the ledger of good and evil, there are names on both sides from every race, religion and political persuasion, as demonstrated so clearly on Sunday. Senseless killing of innocents is always enough to pencil a name into the evil side of the ledger. But people who foment hatred, and whose policies inspire evil in others, cannot claim innocence either. The divisive actions of “strong men” like Donald Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu or the Hamas leaders directly and indirectly cause needless tragedies like at Bondi. Division sows hatred, hatred breeds killing. Dick Clarke, Elanora Heights

Valour award

It is 22 years since someone was awarded the Cross of Valour, Australia’s highest honour for bravery. Surely Ahmed el Ahmed, whom Prime Minister Albanese has described as a true Australian hero, is worthy of such recognition for his extraordinary courage in single-handedly disarming one of the gunmen? Who knows how many lives he saved (“From coffee run to hero; PM visits hero bystander in hospital”, December 16)? John Ure, Mount Hutton

Ahmed al Ahmed has been hospitalised with gunshot wounds after he heroically ambushed one of the assailants.

Peace plans

Enough of the finger-pointing. Anyone can understand how devastated the Jewish community must feel after the Bondi attack. The Muslim community will be feeling it too. Implicitly blaming them for actions of two rogue individuals is unfair. As Tony Wright says, it’s “an opportunity and surely a duty” for our political leaders to put aside their differences and take decisive action (“An unfamiliar moment cries for leadership”, December 16). But there are so many small things the rest of us can do to help heal the wounds. Confrontation achieves nothing; we should all be urging our community and religious representatives to work amicably together to find strategies for enduring, peaceful relationships. It’s easy on a person-to-person basis; it can’t be too hard for our whole community to wake up and realise that we need to make the effort. Jenifer Nicholls, Windsor (Vic)

Stand together

On hearing of the Bondi shootings, I was going to contact all my Jewish friends, offering my consolation and support over Hanukkah, but it occurred to me that my friendships are not based on religion and that I should rather be offering support to all my friends, in case any of them are struggling with what has happened. The murders were first and foremost an assault on Jewish Australians, but also on all Australians, agnostic, atheist, Buddhist, Christian, Mormon or Muslim. If there is a god that endorses such acts of murder, then clearly that god has no place here. Garry Dalrymple, Earlwood

Since Sunday’s horrific attack, I have been enormously comforted by the overwhelming sympathy and support that I have received personally and that the Jewish community generally has received from the community. I thank you all. I feel that if this act of evil leads to a wider recognition that antisemitism is a hateful, divisive and destructive ideology which has no part in Australian thinking, then it will be the true revenge on the horrible individuals who perpetrated it. Richard Grant, St Leonards

In this time of horror we should all remember the wise words of British poet John Donne: “Do not ask for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee.” We are all affected, we have all been diminished by what has occurred, and the bell is tolling now for all of us. Pauline Croxon, Earlwood

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