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Following the tragedy of the horrific incident at Bondi, Australia is confronting several pressing reckonings. We are seeing a long-overdue national focus on anti-Jewish sentiment, an persistent worry about national security, and questions about the way such an tragedy could happen. However, from the perspective of a health professional and Australian Jew, the most important dialogue we are finally having revolves around firearms.

A Decade of Cautions and a Successful Solution

Health specialists have been issuing warnings about guns for at least 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 experienced approximately one large-scale firearm incident per year. In the decades since, there have been vanishingly few significant tragedies, with none reaching the fatalities of the shootings in the 1980s and 1990s.

The Bondi Attack and the Function of Current Laws

Amidst the Bondi tragedy, the nation's firearm regulations were not entirely useless. It has been suggested the alleged attackers possessed with bolt-action rifles and a straight-pull shotgun. These weapons can only fire a single bullet at a time, necessitating a physical action to chamber the subsequent shot. While these guns can be fired rapidly with devastating effect, they remain far slower and less efficient than the large-magazine, semi-automatic rifles commonplace in international attacks. The number of deaths at Bondi would've been far higher if more advanced firearms had been available.

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

A System Under Strain

Yet, the terrible consequences of the attack demonstrates that existing firearm regulations are failing. Crafted in the late 1990s with the noblest aims, years have eroded their efficacy. Alarmingly, there are currently a greater number of guns in Australia than before the Port Arthur massacre, with some individuals in urban areas reportedly holding arsenals numbering in the hundreds.

The nation has grown overconfident and it has exacted a terrible price.

The Road Ahead: Proposed Reforms

Since the Bondi tragedy, there have been numerous declarations regarding strengthened firearm legislation. The state of NSW in particular will shortly introduce a package of measures to mitigate the public danger posed by firearms. The federal government has proposed a fresh gun buyback, and there is hope for a countrywide gun database, notwithstanding the complexities of coordinating state and federal jurisdictions.

All of this are only possible if the nation works together. As stated, regarding firearm laws, the country is only as strong as its least stringent jurisdiction. This is the very nature of the Australian federation – laws in one state are easily circumvented if they can be avoided with a short drive across a state line.

Addressing Common Arguments

We hear the predictable argument that "guns don't kill people, people kill people". This is true in the identical way that planes don't transport people, pilots do. Yes, aircraft require operators, but it would be quite challenging for a pilot to move 500 people internationally without the aircraft. The horrific violence seen at Bondi would be extremely difficult without firearms, and would have been far less damaging if the accused individuals had not had access to the firearms they used.

Balancing Necessity and Security

There are valid reasons for some Australians to possess guns. Farm work or culling pests in many places is extremely difficult without them. A total ban of guns from the country is not feasible, as in certain contexts they are essential tools.

What we can do – what we must do – is to guarantee that gun laws are updated to accurately reflect the society we live in today. Australia's legislation have historically been the envy of the world, but time and distance has taken a toll and the nation is less secure as it previously was. It is vital to take the lessons of Bondi seriously, and make certain that future generations are as protected as previous generations have been.

As one commentator remarked after the Bondi attack, "things like this just don't happen here". This is true, 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.