Gun laws 'off target'

As America reels over the mass killing of students and teachers in West Virginia by a man wielding two semi-automatic pistols, in Malta it has become far easier to buy a powerful semi-automatic pistol like the ones used in America than a shotgun for hunting.

Informed sources have told The Times that a "Target Shooter A" licence, which enables one to buy a rapid firing weapon such as a Glock and keep up to 5,000 rounds of ammunition, can be obtained in about a month.

"The Glock is a weapon used by special forces. On the other hand, to become a hunter, you need to wait for months on end," a source said.

"I know of people who bought shotguns last January because they wanted to become hunters but they have not yet been called to sit for their test and the guns are still in the gun shops.

"To be able to buy a semi-automatic pistol, or any other weapon such as a rifle, which are not used for hunting, one has to join a club, of which there are three on the island.

"One is given basic training on how to handle a weapon, learn about the ramifications of the law and how to store the weapon and the ammunition.

"But at the end of the day, one is still in possession of a powerful weapon, and one can keep up to 10 modern weapons," the source added.

Another gun enthusiast said the law was absurd. "A person can keep up to 5,000 rounds of ammunition and a gun shop can have only 12,000 rounds in the shop."

"It's also absurd that while a licensed hunter can only take one gun to hunt, a target shooter can have up to three even though there are no ranges yet where these weapons can be used."

A gun collector contacted by The Times said the way the Arms Ordnance has been changed has scrapped the notion that antique weapons no longer need a licence and "has placed all weapons in the same basket.

"Thus a collector, who buys weapons to keep but not to use, still has to get a licence to keep them. One needs the same licence to keep a high powered pistol or a harmless air weapon."

The sources commented on how relatively cheap high-powered weapons are. For around Lm220, one can buy a top of the range pistol. Prices for rifles start at around Lm500 while a sniper rifle can be bought for about Lm800. A heavy .308 calibre rifle, used to kill a moose weighing 800 kilos, can be bought locally, where there is no use for them.

"No distinction has been made between a collector and one who buys weapons for the fun of it.

"An antique collectible weapon is now considered just like a high powered rifle used by military services. "What use is there for such weapons locally? Getting collector's items is one thing. Importing AK-47 Kalashnikovs is another," this source said.

An air gun enthusiast said another anomaly existed in the sale and use of air guns.

"A 12-foot pound airgun is not a powerful weapon and can be safely used to shoot at targets in one's own basement. But one is not allowed to do that.

"Yet we're importing field target weapons having the strength of 80-foot pound models, which some are modifying to 100-foot pounders, making them as powerful and as lethal as a rifle and there is nowhere one can use them!"

A gun dealer said the way the law has been changed has made it impossible for people to buy a shotgun to keep at home "for peace of mind". "Some people used to buy a shotgun just to have a weapon at home and used to pay only a licence just to keep it. Now that's been changed and one has either to get a hunting licence, with the tough hurdles there are to obtain it, or a clay pigeon shooter's licence, even though whoever bought the gun wanted to have a weapon at home for peace of mind," the dealer said.

"Considering the arsenal that is being imported, this makes no sense," he said.