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In the aftermath of the awful incident at Bondi, Australia is facing multiple critical conversations. There is a much-needed national spotlight on antisemitism, an persistent concern about public safety, and inquiries about how such an tragedy could occur. However, from the perspective of a health professional and Australian Jew, the paramount dialogue we are finally having centers on firearms.

Ten Years of Cautions and a Proven Response

Health specialists have been issuing warnings about firearms for at least a decade. Following the events of the Port Arthur massacre, Australians came together and implemented a series of measures to curb gun violence nationwide. The strategy succeeded. Prior to 1996, the nation experienced approximately one mass shooting per year. In the decades since, there have been vanishingly few significant tragedies, with none reaching the death toll of the incidents in the 1980s and 1990s.

The Bondi Tragedy and the Function of Existing Regulations

Amidst the Bondi events, the nation's gun laws were partially effective. Reports indicate the alleged attackers might have been armed with bolt-action rifles and at least one straight-pull shotgun. These firearms can only fire a one round at a time, requiring a manual operation to chamber the next round. While these guns can be fired quite quickly with lethal results, they remain far slower and less efficient than the large-magazine, semi-automatic rifles commonplace in international mass shootings. The number of deaths at Bondi would've been far higher if more advanced weapons had been available.

Stopping a future Bondi demands unity across all states. And unfortunately, we have already seen fissures in the united front.

Legislation Under Strain

Yet, the horrific toll of the attack reveals that current firearm regulations are failing. Designed in the late 1990s with the noblest aims, years have eroded their effectiveness. Alarmingly, there are currently a greater number of guns in Australia than prior to the Port Arthur shooting, with some citizens in urban areas reportedly holding arsenals numbering in the hundreds.

The nation has grown overconfident and it has cost us terribly.

The Path Ahead: Announced Changes

In the time after the Bondi attack, there have been multiple announcements regarding strengthened gun laws. New South Wales specifically will soon introduce a package of measures to reduce the public danger from firearms. The federal government has proposed a new firearm surrender scheme, and there is hope for a national firearms registry, notwithstanding the inherent challenges of aligning state and federal jurisdictions.

These measures are feasible provided that the nation acts in unison. As stated, when it comes to firearm laws, the country is dependent on its least stringent jurisdiction. This is the very nature of the Australian federation – regulations in one state are much less meaningful if they can be avoided with a short drive across a state line.

Addressing Frequent Objections

There is the inevitable response that "guns don't kill people, people kill people". This is true in the identical way that aircraft do not fly passengers, aviators do. Certainly, planes can't fly themselves, but it would be quite challenging for a pilot to move 500 people internationally without the aircraft. The horrific violence witnessed at Bondi would be all but impossible without firearms, and would have been far less damaging if the alleged terrorists had not had access to the weapons they used.

Balancing Need and Security

There are legitimate reasons for some Australians to possess guns. Managing livestock or controlling vermin in rural areas is incredibly hard without them. A total ban of guns from the country is not feasible, as in certain contexts they are essential tools.

The achievable goal – what we must do – is to ensure that firearm legislation are updated to accurately reflect the society we live in today. Australia's legislation have long been the envy of the world, but time and distance has done its work and the nation is less secure as it once was. It is critical to learn from the tragedy of Bondi to heart, and make certain that coming Australians are as protected as previous generations have been.

As one commentator remarked after the Bondi events, "such tragedies just don't happen here". They don't, but only because the country has made concerted efforts to maintain its security. However horrific as the incident was, there is an aspiration that it can serve as the final tragedy the nation experiences.