NZ SHOOTERS BACK GUN CONTROL

Gun lobby backs changes to law for curbs to prevent another terrorist attack

NEW Zealand will crack down on firearms ownership this week after the mosques massacre in Christchurch that claimed 50 lives, and the Kiwi gun lobby, for the most part, is okay with that.

In stark contrast to the United States, where even minor curbs on gun ownership meet ferocious opposition led by the National Rifle Association, New Zealand gun

owners agree action is needed.

The March 15 rampage by a white supremacist gunman has been a shock to the system.

“We want to support our government in any changes to prevent a terrorist attack from happening in New Zealand again,” said Nicole McKee, secretary of the Council of Licensed Firearm Owners.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s government announced an immediate ban on militarystyle semi-automatic rifles after the shooting and would put laws to Parliament formalising its action today.

Finalising such legislation can often take months, but Ardern said the matter was so urgent it would be done by April 11.

Further curbs — potentially including a gun register, tighter vetting and stricter gun storage rules — are set to be passed by the end of the year.

In a move that would be unthinkable in the US, one of New Zealand’s largest gun retailers, Hunting & Fishing, voluntarily stopped selling military-style semi-automatic rifles and halted online firearms sales.

“Such weapons of war have no place in our business or our country,” said chief executive Darren Jacobs.

New Zealand has its National Rifle Association, but since the shooting, it has been at pains to point out it is a small sporting organisation, not a wealthy lobby group like its US counterpart.

“Our members shoot with single-shot bolt action rifles at paper targets,” president Malcolm Dodson said.

Another office holder said the New Zealand NRA was considering changing its name to avoid association with the US body.