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Following the tragedy of the awful attack at Bondi, Australia is confronting several critical conversations. We are seeing a long-overdue national spotlight on antisemitism, an persistent worry about public safety, and inquiries about the way such an event could occur. But, from the perspective of a health professional and Australian Jew, the most important dialogue we are now having centers on firearms.

Ten Years of Cautions and a Successful Solution

Health specialists have been issuing warnings about guns for a minimum of a ten-year period. Following the events of the Port Arthur tragedy, Australians came together and enacted a suite of reforms to reduce gun violence nationwide. And it worked. Prior to 1996, the nation witnessed approximately one large-scale firearm incident per year. In the decades since, there have been extremely rare major events, with none reaching the death toll of the incidents in the 1980s and 1990s.

The Bondi Attack and the Role of Existing Regulations

Amidst the Bondi tragedy, the nation's firearm regulations were not entirely useless. It has been suggested the individuals involved might have been armed with manually-operated long guns and a straight-pull shotgun. These weapons are limited to firing a one round at a time, requiring a manual operation to chamber the subsequent shot. Although these guns can be fired quite quickly with devastating effect, they remain far slower and less efficient than the large-magazine, semi-automatic rifles frequently used in overseas attacks. The number of deaths at Bondi would've been far higher if more advanced firearms had been available.

Preventing a future Bondi requires national cohesion. And unfortunately, we have already seen cracks in the united front.

Legislation Showing Weakness

However, the terrible consequences of the incident demonstrates that current firearm regulations are failing. Designed in the late 1990s with the noblest aims, decades have eroded their effectiveness. Concerningly, there are now a greater number of guns in Australia than before the Port Arthur massacre, with some individuals in cities reportedly holding collections of hundreds of weapons.

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

The Road Forward: Announced Reforms

In the time after the Bondi attack, there have been numerous announcements regarding new firearm legislation. The state of NSW in particular will soon introduce a suite of reforms to mitigate the collective risk from firearms. The federal government has announced a new gun buyback, and there is hope for a countrywide gun database, notwithstanding the complexities of coordinating state and federal jurisdictions.

All of this are feasible provided that the nation works together. As stated, regarding firearm laws, the country is only as strong as its weakest link. This is the very nature of the Australian system – laws in one state are easily circumvented if they can be bypassed with a journey across a border.

Addressing Common Arguments

We hear the inevitable argument that "firearms are not the killers, people kill people". This is accurate in the same sense that planes don't transport people, pilots do. Yes, aircraft require operators, but it would be virtually impossible for a captain to transport 500 people internationally without the plane. The horrific violence witnessed at Bondi would be extremely difficult without guns, and would have been far less damaging if the accused individuals had been denied access to the firearms they used.

Weighing Need and Safety

It is acknowledged there are valid reasons for some Australians to possess guns. Farm work or controlling vermin in rural areas is incredibly hard without them. A total ban of guns from the country is impractical, as in some cases they are indispensable.

The achievable goal – the imperative action – is to ensure that firearm legislation are updated to accurately reflect the society we live in today. Australia's laws have historically been the envy of the world, but the passage of years has taken a toll and the nation is less secure as it previously was. It is critical to learn from the tragedy of Bondi to heart, and ensure that coming Australians are equally safe as previous generations have been.

A commentator remarked after the Bondi attack, "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 ever sees.