Asj Special Election Issue

SPECIAL ELECTION ISSUE AUSTRALIANASJ SHOOTERS JOURNAL The political voice of the SSAA Pick a card

Party Policies Politicians’ Proﬁ les

November 2001 Vol. 3 Issue 6 Members-only insert to the Australian Shooter In this issue

A word from 3 the president Party Policies Ofﬁ cial national 4 ﬁ rearm policies.

Politicians’ Proﬁ les Some of our 6 pro-shooting pollies.

10 11 12 13 16

SSAA meets ALP’s stand More on ADI - Media Ammuntion to with Mr Downer - on illegal gun Mr Howard signs inﬂ uence - lobby by - Read the Foreign activity - off on ADI The buy-back Quotes and Minister’s letter to A letter from the propellants. revisited. graphs to con- the SSAA. Leader of the found the antis. Opposition.

2 Australian Shooters Journal TheASJ political voice A word from of the SSAA the President PO Box 2066, KENT TOWN, SA 5071 PHONE: 08 8272 7100 FAX: 08 8272 2945 his November Australians go to While it is not the SSAA’s role to tell Internet: www.ssaa.org.au the polls to decide who will members who they should vote for, as E-mail: govern the country for the next National President I would urge all shooters AS - [email protected] Tthree years. For shooters, elec- to seriously consider where they place their SSAA - [email protected] tions invariably raise the question of fi rearm support - especially when it comes to the policies and just who to vote for. With this Senate. The more pro-shooting politicians A MEMBER OF THE CIRCULATIONS in mind, the Association has put together there are in parliament, the stronger the AUDIT BOARD 96,922 an overview of the various parties and their voice in favour of gun-owners’ rights and the platforms, together with a few highlights harder it is for the anti-gun lobby to pursue This Journal is owned and published by from some noteworthy candidates. its agenda of abolishing private fi rearms the Sporting Shooters’ Association of Aus- tralia Inc. Opinions expressed herein are After some serious state election defeats ownership in Australia. The chance to have those of the authors and do not necessar- during the past few years, politicians from a direct impact on government only comes ily refl ect the policy of this Association. both sides have begun to see the light on gun around once every few years and shooters control. There has been a good deal more need to take full advantage of the opportunity CONTRIBUTIONS: Freelance contributions consideration shown for shooters’ legitimate to make a difference. are welcome. We do, however, recommend concerns on recent issues such as amend- that potential authors contact sub-editor Jennifer Martens prior to story drafting. ments to the Customs regulations and the Color slides and manuscripts may be sent maintenance of Australian Defence Indus- to the address shown above. tries (ADI) facilities. At the same time however, the Australian Democrats and the CONTRIBUTORS: Bill Shelton, Paul Peake, Greens have maintained a persistent anti- Gary Fleetwood. gun outlook, which is refl ected in their Bill Shelton No responsibility can be accepted for respective policy statements. National President errors and/or omissions.

THE AUSTRALIAN SHOOTERS JOUR- NAL is published bi-monthly and is printed by PMP Print, Watson Ave, Netley, SA.

Australian Shooters Journal 3 Party Policies by Paul Peake A looming federal election raises the question of political parties and their various ﬁ rearm policies. The following overview provides a basic guide to the different groups and their positions on private gun ownership.

actively assist by increasing access to Firearms appropriate facilities with additional The Party asserts the right of the law- Pauline Hanson’s shooting ranges. Existing ranges shall also abiding citizen to own and use fi rearms. be granted security of tenure. Self-funding We support the right of fi rearms dealers and cost recovery of such facilities shall be and others with legitimate reasons to have One Nation strongly encouraged. the right to carry a pistol for self-defence One Nation has a comprehensive pro-fi re- and public safety. arm policy that recognises shooting as a The repeal of federal legislation legitimate sport. The party supports the prohibiting the use of military-style fi rearms Hunting principle of self-defence and maintains that by civilians in approved military rifl e clubs The Party supports and will promote all disarming law-abiding Australians is not in under the provisions of the Defence Act. forms of legitimate recreational hunting. the national interest. One Nation’s platform contains a number of sensible proposals, including the following points taken from the Party’s web-site (www.onenation.com.au/ policies_fi rearms.htm): Shooter’s Liberal Register of Prohibited Persons To enable an instant record check to ensure Party Party those persons ineligible to own a fi rearm can be quickly identifi ed, we shall estab- The Shooter’s Party supports the right of At the time of writing, the Liberal Party lish a register of persons prohibited from law-abiding citizens to own and use fi re- does not have a formal fi rearms policy. The fi rearm ownership. Prohibited persons: ie, arms. It also supports the principle of self- Party was nevertheless responsible for those convicted of a violent offence. defence and seeks to promote recreational the gun laws forced on the various states hunting. and territories in the wake of the Shooting Ranges The following are the Party’s policies Australasian Police Ministers’ Council Security of tenure; In the interests of as published on its web site meeting in May 1996. Following the safe and responsible fi rearms use, we will (www.shootersparty.org.au/policy.htm): announcement of the APMC’s resolutions,

4 Australian Shooters Journal the Liberal Government initiated a ‘Buy- including its ‘Buy-back’ confi scation scheme. federal election, the Australian Democrats back’ scheme that ultimately saw the The following policy statements are taken released Peace and Disarmament Policy confi scation of hundreds of thousands of from the organisation’s web site No 41, which called for a complete ban on privately owned fi rearms. Under the (www.nationalparty.org): all fi rearm related publications, including heading ‘Highlights of the Government’s “The National Party believes people who magazines such as the Australian Shooter Achievements’ the Party openly boasts have the legal right and legitimate need to and the Australian Shooters Journal. about its confi scation program own and use a fi rearm should not be unrea- (www.liberal.org.au): sonably restricted by Government regula- “The Firearms Buy-back and Uniform tion or bureaucratic interference. Firearms Laws: The right of individuals to own fi rearms The Coalition provided the leadership to should not extend to anyone who has any The achieve uniform national fi rearms control record of instability, violent crime, the legislation as well as a buy-back of fi rearms unsafe use of weapons or drug or alcohol in the community. This has resulted in more dependency. Australian than 640,000 dangerous fi rearms being sur- Priority should be given to eliminating rendered under the fi rearm scheme. The the causes of crime and the social and eco- Coalition has made Australia a safer place, nomic conditions which have led to rising Greens particularly for women and children.” crime rates. Attention must be given to the infl uence of the visual media and its depic- When it comes to private fi rearms tion of both violence and the irresponsible ownership, the Australian Greens are use of fi rearms and other weapons.” ideological fi rst cousins to the Australian Democrats. Like their Democrat Australian counter-parts, the Greens are keen supporters of the anti-gun movement and back many of its initiatives, as evidenced Labor Party Australian by the following policy statements taken from the Party’s offi cial web site At the time of writing, the Labor Party (www.greens.org.au): does not have a formal fi rearms policy. Democrats “The Australian Greens will support However, the ALP has consistently sup- policies to: ported the anti-gun measures initiated as The Australian Democrats are outspo- part of the Liberal Government’s 1996 ken supporters of the anti-gun lobby. The a) Ensure that Australia will not produce ‘Buy-back’ confi scation scheme. Addition- Party’s platform contains a number of dan- weaponry or components for export… ally, Labor’s Shadow Minister for Justice, gerous anti-gun policies, including the fol- d) End arms trade fairs in Australia and Duncan Kerr, has said that a future Fed- lowing examples taken from its web site coordinate with neighbouring states on eral Labor Government may seek to limit (www.democrats.org.au): similar measures… private handgun ownership exclusively “The Democrats do not believe that Aus- f) Work to develop alternative regional to models used in Olympic-style events. tralia’s current gun laws go nearly far and UN-sponsored disarmament initiatives Conversely, party leader Kim Beazley has enough. with a capacity for binding verifi cation… given a written assurance that Labor does We are still strongly committed to hand- not intend to put any additional restric- ing the power over gun control laws over c) Support initiatives including tions on the possession of handguns. to the Commonwealth via a referendum of legislation, to make gun control an issue the people of Australia and we would like for the Commonwealth; and to see all fi rearms in houses in urban areas d) Support laws which phase out the banned.” keeping of guns in urban homes.” National The Democrats’ policy is to: Initiate an open public process that allows for public input, decision making Party and appeal, before any licences are issued for such practices as the killing of ani- The National Party has been a keen mals; supporter of the Federal Liberal Government’s anti-gun measures during the past fi ve years, It’s worth noting that before the 1996

Australian Shooters Journal 5 Politicians’ Proﬁ les

The events of 1996 Australian Capital Territory New South Wales certainly raised the level of political awareness within Margaret Reid Tony Windsor the shooting fraternity. Liberal Party Independent With this in mind, the SSAA has consistently Margaret Reid is Liberal Along with Peter endeavored to keep Party Senator for the Cochran, Tony Wind- members up-to-date on the Australian Capital Terri- sor has consistently activities of both pro and tory. She is also Patron supported fi rearm anti-gun politicians. With a of the SSAA ACT Junior owners in NSW. Tony marched and spoke at federal election on the way, Development Section that seeks to allow our the Macquarie Street the following profi les have young shooters to fully rally in 1996 and he been assembled to guide explore the potential they have as athletes also attempted to introduce legislation in your voting selection. and teach them about the contribution they 1997 to allow for the use of self-loading can make to the environment through their military rifl es at NSW rifl e ranges. activities.

Margaret is also a strong advocate of the safety programs conducted by SSAA. She has opened a number of shooting events and has closely followed the work of the Association in its international efforts. Mar- garet has been the Leader of many Parlia- mentary delegations to overseas countries and she is also the President of the Senate. New South Wales Peter Cochran Independent

Phone: (02) 6284 3368 E-mail: [email protected]

Peter Cochran is the former NSW Parliamentary Member for the seat of Monaro. He has been an outspoken advocate on behalf of ﬁ rearm owners in NSW for more than ten years. He argued against both the Federal Government’s ‘Buy-back’ scheme and the subsequent changes to the State’s gun laws and has undertaken to champion shooters’ interests in Federal Parliament.

6 Australian Shooters Journal Northern Territory QueenslandQueensland Nigel Scullion Bob Katter Liberal Party Independent

Liberal Party endorsed E-mail: [email protected] candidate for the Senate Electorate Phone: (07) 4061 6066

Nigel is committed to the sustainable Bob Katter is one of the few politicians use of wildlife and has in Australia prepared to express his an extensive history views publicly without fear or favour. Bob Katter took time out to view of promoting habitat He has immense local support in a training session with D Company protection for the wild- return for absolute loyalty to the of the 51st Battalion, Far North life of Australia. Nigel people of his electorate. Ever support- Queensland Regiment, at the Mt Isa has been a commercial fi sherman for 20 ive of gun owners throughout the coun- Rifl e Range earlier this year. He was years and operates a charter company that try, Bob’s concerns about unjust gun supervised on the 5.56mm Steyr rifl e, incorporates fi shing and guided hunting laws are kindled by his own collection which is the Army’s standard issue small arm. He was able to fi re the tours. Chairman of the Northern Territory of rifl es and shotguns. Now an indepen- rifl e by day with an enhanced optical Fisheries Industries Council, Nigel is also dent, Bob Katter will no doubt have scope and by night with the aid a member of several management advisory the support of many SSAA members of a night vision device. Left: Mr committees on fi shing and environmental throughout his large electorate of Ken- Bob Katter (Member for Kennedy), issues. Married with two children, Nigel nedy. Right: Major Martin Skin (Offi cer and his family spend a great deal of time Commanding D Company) camping, fi shing and hunting. Queensland Kevin Rudd Labor Party SSAA members, particularly 2000 International Metallic Sil- those in Queensland, will be aware houette Shooting Championships that the Belmont range in suburban hosted by SSAA in Brisbane, Brisbane is one of the biggest and which attracted some 190 partici- most diverse in the country. The pants from 16 countries around range hosts facilities for more than the world. He is also a patron ten shooting organisations. It is of the Australian Shooting Games also slap bang in the middle of held at Belmont and is a regular Kevin Rudd’s federal electorate presenter of awards at the of Griffi th. Kevin makes no ‘Queens Prize’ - one of the pre- apologies for being a long-standing mier shooting competitions in supporter of shooters’ rights. He Queensland. has participated in a number of Apart from all that, every now celebrity events at the Belmont and then Kevin fi nds the time Kevin makes the effort to set aside time to read - range throughout the years, along to improve his clay target skills. fi rearm books hold a special interest. with former South Australian ALP Asked about his prowess with Senator John Quirk, who serves as a shotgun, Kevin simply replies, Member for Griffi th a patron for a number of shooting “I’ve got a very, very, very long E-mail: [email protected] organisations. way to go. Michael Diamond can Electorate Phone: (07) 3899 4031 Kevin also offi cially opened the rest easy for quite a while yet.”

Australian Shooters Journal 7 Queensland Victoria Warren Entsch David Hawker Liberal Party Liberal Party

Member for Leichhardt Member for Wannon E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] Electorate Phone: (07) 4051 2220 Electorate Phone: (03) 5572 1100

Warren Entsch has the A keen clay target shooter and hunter, support of the Cairns David’s tireless work is acknowledged by SSAA Branch and many shooting organisations. David chaired other ﬁ rearm owners the Coalition Government’s Committee in the area for his work on gun laws, which worked hard to on gaining access to convince the Prime Minister to allow property for the estab- the crimping of shotguns. Although John lishment of a range Howard eventually rejected the proposal, facility adjacent to the Wangetti Big Bore David has continued to encourage his section is especially appreciative of David’s range. Whether it be a state or federal issue, colleagues to work with shooting assistance in building bridges between the Warren will intervene to lend a hand to those organisations. The SSAA’s Special Projects government and the Association. shooters who need assistance. Queensland South Australia De-Anne Kelly National Party Senator Member for Dawson Jeannie Ferris E-mail: [email protected] Electorate Phone: (07) 4957 6411 Liberal Party

E-mail: [email protected] Adelaide Ofﬁ ce Phone: (08) 8237 6840

De-Anne Kelly presenting an Jeanie Ferris is a Australian fl ag to the SSAA Senator for South Mackay Branch at a ceremony Australia. She has to award two members with the been consistently Australian Sports Medal. supportive of the De-Anne Kelly on cadet fi rearm regular or a reservist,” she said. shooting sports, par- training: “I am particularly pleased that the ticularly hunting and Mrs Kelly said that Dr Brendan review recommended that consideration conservation. Jean- Nelson, Parliamentary Secretary to the should be given to using local ranges nie has been impressed by the efforts Minister for Defence, was to be com- and shooting clubs for fi rearms training of hunters where feral animal control mended for his far-sighted view of and fi ring. is concerned and has keenly followed cadet training. “This has the potential to use the the efforts of the SSAA in the Flinders “For many young Australians, partic- facilities and services of organisations and Gammons Ranges. She has a strong ipation in cadets brings rewards in the like the Sporting Shooters’ Association background in rural and regional affairs, areas of leadership, discipline and per- and to draw on the wide experience of agriculture and the environment. Jean- sonal development, and for others it is their members in the safe and expert nie also maintains a shooting library in a fi rst voluntary step towards a career use of fi rearms.” her federal parliamentary offi ce for the in the Australian Defence Forces as a benefi t of her colleagues and others who visit her in Canberra.

8 Australian Shooters Journal Victoria Victoria Victoria Simon Crean Fran Bailey Stewart McArthur Labor Party Liberal Party Liberal Party

Member for Corangamite E-mail: [email protected] Electorate Phone: (03) 5243 8766

Stewart is a licensed shooter and keen Member for McEwen hunter whose family E-mail: [email protected] runs sheep grazing Member for Hotham Electorate Phone: (03) 5962 1255 properties in the E-mail: [email protected] district around Electorate Phone: (03) 9545 6211 Fran is a member of the Joint Standing Camperdown. He has Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and hunted with David Hawker and is a close Simon Crean (left) has shown support for Trade and was instrumental in the recent friend and shooting SSAA activities and has indicated an ability signing of an agreement to upgrade the ADI companion of Tom Austin, chairman of the to differentiate between the activities of facility at Mulwala. A staunch supporter of Hunting Advisory Committee in Victoria. legitimate sporting shooters and the crimi- a strong defence capability, Fran has worked Stewart has never backed away from nal misuse of guns. tirelessly with the SSAA in achieving a positive result for the people of Mulwala and supporting ﬁ rearm owners and he has the those SSAA members who use ADI sporting support of shooting associations in Victoria. propellants.

Victoria Western Australia Wilson Tuckey has on many occasions indicated his objection to major aspects Sharman Stone Wilson Tuckey of the ﬁ rearm legislation package introduced in 1996. Wilson attended Liberal Party Liberal Party a pro-gun rally in Perth organised by the ﬁ rearms fraternity, at which he outlined Member for Murray Member for O’Connor his concerns. He also publicly stated that E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] the Howard Government would regret the Electorate Phone: (03) 5821 5371 Electorate Phone: (08) 9325 4077 decision to not allow the crimping of shotguns.

Sharman has been very supportive of Western Australia fi rearm owners and One Nation’s Senate ticket. No politician the conservation Graeme Campbell has been more outspoken in support work done by shoot- for shooters’ rights throughout the past ers, particularly Field One Nation Party fi ve years than Graeme Campbell. He and Game. Sharman has consistently denounced the Federal recently opened the Campaign Offi ce Phone: (08) 93619388 Government’s ‘Buy-back’ scheme and Pine Grove Gun Club Web-site: www.waon.net has been prepared to go to bat for fi rearm pavilion development. owners at every opportunity. As a former The ceremony took place before the club’s Graeme Campbell is the professional shooter, he has a unique monthly ‘50 Targets Off The Gun’ shoot. former Member for the appreciation of the problems the Federal Sharman’s position as Parliamentary Secre- Government’s policies have created. tary to the Minister for the Environment & seat of Kalgoorlie. At the Heritage Minister Robert Hill means he is forthcoming election he Graeme certainly deserves the support well placed to keep up with the important is standing at the top of of members in WA. contribution hunters make to conservation.

Australian Shooters Journal 9 SSAA Meets with Downer n September 18, Keith Tid- swell and Gary Fleetwood from the SSAA and Tom O Mason, Secretariat of the World Forum on the Future of Sports Shooting Activities (WFSA), met with Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Alexander Downer. The purpose of the meeting was to clarify Australia’s position with regard to the private ownership and the recreational use of firearms. The Min- ister provided a letter (opposite) outlin- ing Australia’s position and he gave reas- surances that recreational shooters were not under threat. While a ‘program of action’ was adopted at the recent United Nations Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms held in New York in July, the problem is that no clear definition of small arms was agreed upon. While many delegates were firmly of the opinion that military-style arms were the focus of discussions, there was considerable pressure from hard-line anti- gun groups to have all types of firearms included. Hunting and shooting groups voiced their legitimate concerns about the fact that many common civilian firearms have their origins in military models. This is especially true of hunting rifles, which are based on the German Army’s 1898 Mauser design. Likewise, due to common design characteristics, there is little dif- ferentiation with regards to ‘military’ or ‘civilian’ categories when it comes to handguns. The World Forum held a meeting with firearm manufacturers, small arms experts and government representatives in London in April at the Imperial War Museum to try and come to grips with the problem of a practical definition. The con- sensus was that firearms in the context of ‘military small arms’ and ‘light weapons’ should be clearly limited to “lethal weapons of war, which are capable of full auto- Alexander Downer Australia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs is ﬂ anked by Tom Mason, matic fire.” SSAA and the WFSA are con- Secretariat of the World Forum on the future tinuing to work with industry and govern- of Sports Shooting Activities (left), and Keith Tidswell, Executive Director of Foreign Affairs ments on the issue. and Public Relations SSAA.

10 Australian Shooters Journal ALP’s stand on illegal gun activity n the past few years, Australia has seen Beazley, was keen to assure shooters in a a marked increase in the use of illegal recent letter that the ALP’s policy focus is 1. The Australian 30/4/01 handguns in crime - with pistol-related centred exclusively on illegal ﬁ rearms and 2. Sydney Morning Herald 30/4/01 homicides up from 13 percent in 1995 that the Party has no plans to ban hand- 3. Vic PolMin letter to SSAA 13/6/2001 I 1 4. John Laws 2UE 30/4/2001 to 42 per cent in 1999. Most politicians guns. While the SSAA certainly welcomes 5. Alan Jones Today Show 2/5/2001 acknowledge that the use of illegal guns has the statement, only time will tell if the ALP 6. www.ssaa.org.au/ukcrime.html very little to do with the legitimate activities is prepared to stand by its commitment. 7. www.aic.gov.au/publications/tandi/tandi151.html See Page 4. of licensed shooters. With the support of the SSAA, Queensland

Gary Fleetwood Premier Peter Beattie recently introduced legislation to ensure that deactivated fi rearms remain on the system and can be accounted for. NSW Premier Bob Carr has also introduced the ‘Firearms Traffi cking Bill’, which signifi cantly increases the pen- alties for dealing in illegal guns. Both the NSW and Victorian Govern- ments have rejected calls for a total ban on handguns by Greens Senator, Bob Brown2. A letter sent to the SSAA by the Victorian Minister for Police and Emergency Services, Andrew Haermeyer, stated, “There is no proposal to prohibit all semi-automatic handguns in Victoria.”3 Even outspoken media identities such as John Laws and Alan Jones acknowledge the futility of banning legal handguns when criminals will simply ply their trade as normal. “I just see it as being totally unworkable and were it brought in all it would do would be to drive what there is further underground and make the black market for handheld fi rearms even greater,” said John Laws.4 And this from Alan Jones, “Much has been said in recent days about the issue of illegal handguns and that inevitably has led to the rather foolish call to ban semi-automatic handguns.”5 The comments are supported by recent fi gures available from Britain’s Home Offi ce, which clearly show that the 1997 ban on private handgun ownership in the UK has not stopped a dramatic rise in handgun-related offences6 - a fact which is not surprising given the Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) Trends and Issue paper #151 that clearly showed that licensed fi rearm owners are not an issue when it comes to gun- related homicides.7 The Leader of the Opposition, Mr Kim

Australian Shooters Journal 11 Howard signs off on ADI propellants by Gary Fleetwood

n July 9, 2001, the Howard Govern- ment announced a commitment to upgrade the Australian Defence O Industries (ADI) factory in Mul- wala, securing more than 300 jobs and ensur- ing that Australia can produce its own propellants and explosives. The news was announced by Parliamentary Secretary for Defence, Dr Brendan Nelson, and was reported in the August edition of the Australian Shooter. On September 18, 2001 the SSAA was invited to Parliament House by Dr Nelson to meet with ADI Managing Director Jean- Georges Malcor, after the signing of a Mem- orandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Federal Government, represented by the Under Secretary for Defence Material Mr M J Roche, and Mr Malcor. The importance of supply of sporting propellants to some one million shooters in Australia was not lost on Mr Malcor, who also expressed his thanks to the SSAA for their positive involvement in this issue. Gary Fleetwood (left), and Gary Article 5 of the document made a mutual Nairn Lib (Eden Monaro) acknowledge the results of a commitment to the effect that “The Depart- successful campaign. ment of Defence and ADI will work together, as a matter of high priority, to develop and The buck stops here - signature fi nalise a proposal for the modernisation of the of the Prime Minister John Howard. Mulwala site, and long-term supply of muni- tions.” In August, the Howard Government announced it would sign a MOU with the Left to right: MJ Roche for the Defence Mayors of Moira, Corowa and Delatite Shires Department, Dr Brendan Nelson and Jean- underwriting the upgrade. Accordingly, on Georges Malcor for ADI at the signing of the MOU. September 21, 2001, representatives from Moira, Corowa and Delatite Shires signed the agreement along with Prime Minister John Howard. The SSAA was given the opportunity to attend and share in a moment that ensured jobs for rural Australia and guaranteed sporting shooters continued access to the world’s best sporting propellant. SSAA members should write or e-mail the offi ce of Dr Brendan Nelson MP, Member for Bradfi eld (NSW); Mrs Joanna Gash MP, Member for Gilmore (NSW); Gary Nairn, Member for Eden-Monaro; Fran Bailey, Member for McEwen and Mr David Hawker MP, Member for Wannon (Vic) for their efforts in securing a very positive outcome for both the local Mulwala community and sporting shooters alike. . 12 Australian Shooters Journal Media infl uence by Gary Fleetwood The recent events in the USA and the subsequent verbal and physical attacks on sections of Aus- tralia’s Moslem Community spark memories of a disastrous incident in 1996 that resulted in draconian changes to Australian gun laws - changes in which one million fi rearm owners had no say, not so the media.

Mass Murder The consequences of the recent attack on the ‘stuck to his guns’ when taking divisive deci- counterparts. With a fi rm stance on people World Trade Centre may eventually impinge sions, his 1996 gun reform strategy certainly smuggling and a decisive commitment to upon freedoms enjoyed by enlightened did nothing to assist the Coalition during the assist the US, the government has boosted communities across the globe. Catastrophe last federal election. its popularity to a possibly election-winning often initiates change and this catastrophe level. This (1998) election, with the ballots has certainly initiated a change in the of 88.3 percent of Australia’s 12 million way the civilized world sees acts of mass- Almost four out of fi ve Australians enrolled voters counted, John Howard violence. Many countries have set aside support Prime Minister John Howard’s is still 1,090,845 votes short of the their differences in order to form a coalition response to the United States terrorist sweeping victory that made him Prime dedicated to achieving a common goal - a strikes, which includes sending Minister 31 months ago...the Howard world free from terrorism. Knives are now Australian troops as part of an Government had the dutiful distinction banned on US fl ights and travelers must international force against terrorism. A of having polled the worst Coalition undergo comprehensive screening before poll, conducted by Newspoll exclusively primary vote since Menzies founded the being allowed to take their seat on an aircraft. for The Sunday Telegraph, shows that Liberal Party more than half a century Shares in the gun industry have risen, while voters have swung behind Mr Howard earlier. more than a trillion dollars1 has disappeared and almost half the electorate believes from the value of other US stocks. Australia Alan Ramsay Staff Writer - Sydney that the Coalition will win the election, was one of the fi rst countries to agree to a Morning Herald 14/10/98 due by the end of the year. The key reason united approach in pursuit of a safer world, for the boost in Mr Howard’s standing with the Prime Minister warning the nation The recent arrival of one too many boats was his stance on asylum seekers and there may be a cost in the form of Australian carrying illegal immigrants and the recent his refusal to allow 435 people aboard casualties. attack upon the United States created an the Tampa to land in Australia. opportunity for the government to increase The Strategy its electoral stocks. The Prime Minister has The Sunday Telegraph Sydney 23/9/01 While Prime Minister Howard has often read the current mood far better than his

Australian Shooters Journal 13 “This is a deﬁ ning moment in Australian history and one which ﬁ rearm owners, their families and the community can be very proud.” Attorney-General Daryl Williams

Intended Unforgivable announcement by the Queensland Govern- interpret them. ‘Lies, damn lies and sta- Consequences ment that it would underwrite a new rifl e tistics’ ring all too true. While hundreds of thousands of fi rearm range. The headline implied that shooters It makes these comments in upholding owners shared the country’s horror follow- were somehow joyful on the second anniver- parts of a complaint against The Daily ing the terrible events at Port Arthur in 1996, sary of the Port Arthur tragedy. The Aus- Telegraph, Sydney, over a December 3, the anti-gun movement and the media quickly tralian Press Council subsequently ruled in 1997 report of the use of now banned launched the most outrageous mass-charac- favour of the Sporting Shooters Association guns in murders in Australia. The Press ter assassination the country had ever seen. in its claim that The Australian had breached Council fi nds that the report and head- The victims? The shooting fraternity across the APCs code of conduct. lines were misleading and the newspa- the board. There was more. per made insuffi cient effort to correct an Bashing gun owners plumbed new depths error when it was drawn to their atten- of editorial mischief. Take for instance the The Press Council wishes again to draw tion. headline ‘Joy for shooters on day of mas- attention to the need for care in reporting The introduction to the Telegraph story sacre’2 in which The Australian detailed an statistics and extreme care in trying to accurately stated that the statistics

14 Australian Shooters Journal expecting an audience with the Prime showed that “nearly half the gun murders lobby to force the Federal Government Minister. He got as far as John Howard’s in the past seven years involved fi rearms to water down its plan for strict new gun chief political adviser, Grahame Morris, now prohibited or restricted.” However, controls.4 before being turned back. This rebuff for the statistics also show, on careful read- Australia’s most prominent gun lobbyist ing, that only 10 per cent of all homicides What exactly is the implication - that was an important, symbolic pointer to (involving all weapons, including knives, people who disagree with the government’s the way John Howard has fought his other weapons and bare hands) were draconian approach are not of goodwill? crusade over this past fortnight for gun caused by now banned fi rearms. The Australian Medical Association (AMA) law reform.9 The main headlines: ‘Banned guns big stepped into the fray and demanded that killers:’ was thus misleading and the sec- fi rearms be classifi ed as a “health issue”. Add the disastrous public relations episode ondary headline, ‘50pc of murder weap- “Anything that kills 500-plus people a year at Sale in Victoria, which saw the Prime Min- ons now illegal’ was wrong; it should have is a very legitimate cause for doctors to ister address concerned fi rearm owners while read ‘gun murder weapons.’ Later the be involved in,” said AMA South Australian sporting a bullet-proof vest and you begin to story went on to say incorrectly that an President John Emery.5 A bit rich coming from realise why the ramifi cations of the whole institute study had shown that “46 per a profession that sees “between 10,000 and sorry episode continue to endure. cent of the more than 2200 murders com- 14,000 Australian patients [die] in hospitals Many shooters are still understandably mitted between 1989 and 1996 involved from preventable causes each year.”6 The angry at having their property confi scated weapons now prohibited or restricted.” facts speak for themselves - you may be a while receiving paltry lip service from politi- In fact, the total of “homicide incidents” lot safer on an SSAA range than under a cians like Attorney-General Daryl Williams: given in this study was 2220, only 21 surgeon’s scalpel at your local hospital. per cent of those involved fi rearms of Anticipating a backlash against the local “This is a defi ning moment in Australian all types; and guns now prohibited or Moslem community as a result of the war history and one which fi rearm owners, restricted were involved in about 48 per on terrorism, a recent Daily Telegraph7 arti- their families and the community can be cent of that 21 per cent. cle noted, “But it is wrong to take the conduct very proud.”10 Any reader who followed the fi gures of a small minority and use it as justifi cation “I want to take this opportunity to again given by the paper would assume that in for the persecution of an entire group.” Very applaud fi rearms owners who have shown this period about 1020 murders involved selective morality indeed from an outlet that goodwill and common sense.”11 now-banned guns, whereas the real fi gure, demonized fi rearm owners for months follow- “The Commonwealth knows that, with according to the study’s percentage, was ing the murders at Port Arthur. The admon- the bipartisan support of the opposition 215 “incidents.” ishment of then Deputy Prime Minister Tim parties, its plan (on fi rearms) refl ects Fischer notwithstanding, “Law abiding shoot- the feelings of civilized Australians The Daily Telegraph Sydney 6/3/1998 ers had been ‘unfairly besmirched’ in the everywhere.”12 media after the Port Arthur massacre.”8 Similarly, many thousands of moderate, law- Sporting shooters sought words of support Five years into John Howard’s ‘safer Aus- abiding Australian Moslems may now be sub- from other elected representatives following tralia’, the forthcoming election will no doubt ject to persecution fanned by media reports of Port Arthur. Most requests, however, were see many shooters refl ecting upon the gov- extremist activities in far-away places. After answered with either terse letters parroting ernment’s track record and the political alter- Port Arthur, sporting shooters across the the party line or outright contempt: natives. In light of the current crisis, if there country suffered at the hands of a media quick is to be any legacy at all from the tragic events to emphasize the extremists, while leaving Ted Drane fl ew into Canberra on Monday at Port Arthur, let’s hope that it means honest moderates right out of the debate. Under- Australians, whatever their hue, will never standable when seen against the anti-gun lob- again be forced to endure the sort of intoler- by’s furtive strategies. As Simon Chapman We are unashamed ance heaped on gun owners. . points out in his book The fi ght for Public Health, “The Coalition for Gun Control in in reminding our 1. Foreign Correspondent ABC 26/9/01 Australia generally refers journalists to these critics that it is safer 2. The Australian 29/4/98 more extreme groups for comment.”3 The sit- 3. The Fight For Public Health Chapman Luton Pg 158 4. The Chronicle Victoria 14/5/96 uation was made even more perverse by the on an SSAA fi rearm 5. The Advertiser Adelaide May 1996 support of religious factions such as the Unit- 6. Professor Ken Hillman The Advertiser 25/5/96 7. The Daily Telegraph 8/9/2001 ing Church. range than it is 8. Mackay Daily Mercury 6/6/96 9. Herald Sun ‘Howard’s Personal Mission’ undated. Copy held SSAA The Uniting Church leadership yesterday under the knife in a 10. News Mail Bundaberg 7/1/97 called for “all people of goodwill” to 11. Southern Highlands News Bowral 20/11/96 hospital. 12. Sunday Times WA 23/6/96 strongly resist attempts by the pro-gun

Australian Shooters Journal 15 Ammunition to lobby by by Paul Peake

Most of us have been there; you’re out Dr David Carter Mouzos, J. (2000). No. 151, The with friends, maybe at the pub or perhaps Carter, D. (1999). The Future of Recreational Licensing and Registration Status of talking with a local politician and someone Hunting in Australia. Kent Town: SSAA Inc. Firearms Used in Homicide. Australian passes a comment about guns that you Institute of Criminology: trends & issues know is right off the mark - if only you in crime and criminal justice. could remember that quote or all-important Crime statistic. The following has been put together According to the Australian Bureau of Sta- so the next time your stuck for the fi gures, “An analysis of the licensing and regis- tistics, the percentage of murder victims you’ll have a handy one-page reference tration status of fi rearms used in homicide killed with guns was higher in 2000 (19.5%) point. The intention is to provide updated between 1 July 1997 and 30 June 1999 reveals than in the two years prior to the Federal information so you can build up some basic that the overwhelming majority of these Government’s ‘Buy-back’ scheme. Similarly, ‘ammunition’ to fi re back next time you need fi rearms were not registered and the offend- in 2000 the number of attempted murders to put someone straight about the facts. ers of homicide were not licensed fi rearm involving guns stood at an eight-year high. owners.” The forced confi scation of 640,000 fi rearms Hunting - Australian Institute of Criminology has not made Australia safer. .

Hunting forms an important part of modern environmental management strategies around the world. Every year hundreds of thousands of hunters in Australia work to control feral pests, while the money raised from hunting licences and fees aids in the maintenance of important natural habitats.

“It is my ﬁ rm belief that if you take hunting, shooting and ﬁ shing out of the vital mix of conservation management, the result would be catastrophic.” - Professor David Bellamy Carter, D. (1999). The Future of Recreational Hunting in Australia. Kent Town: SSAA Inc.

“Hunting has considerable potential to assist with conservation objectives. Iron- ically, this is often so for areas of land which are perceived to have little other economic value (such as swamps and wetlands).” - Senate Committee Report Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport References Committee on Com- mercial Utilisation of Australian Native Wild- life.

“Game licence fees in Victoria have raised more than $20 million since 1958 and have been used to purchase wetlands for inclusion in public game reserves.” -

16 Australian Shooters Journal