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In the aftermath of the awful incident at Bondi, Australia is facing several critical reckonings. There is a long-overdue national spotlight on anti-Jewish sentiment, an ongoing concern about public safety, and inquiries about the way such an tragedy could happen. But, from the perspective of a public health expert and Jewish Australian, the most important discussion we are now having centers on firearms.

Ten Years of Warnings and a Proven Solution

Public health experts have been issuing warnings about guns for a minimum of a decade. In the wake of the Port Arthur tragedy, Australians came together and enacted a suite of measures to reduce gun violence nationwide. The strategy succeeded. Before 1996, the nation experienced approximately one mass shooting per year. Over the following years, there have been extremely rare significant tragedies, with none reaching the fatalities of the shootings in the 1980s and 1990s.

This Recent Tragedy and the Function of Existing Laws

Amidst the Bondi tragedy, the nation's gun laws were not entirely useless. It has been suggested the alleged attackers might have been armed with manually-operated long guns and at least one straight-pull shotgun. These firearms are limited to firing a single bullet at a time, necessitating a physical action to chamber the subsequent shot. While these guns are capable of being discharged rapidly with devastating effect, they remain significantly less rapid and more cumbersome than the large-magazine, semi-automatic rifles commonplace in overseas attacks. The casualty count at Bondi could have been much greater if different weapons had been accessible.

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

Legislation Under Strain

However, the terrible toll of the incident reveals that current gun laws are inadequate. Crafted in the late 1990s with the noblest aims, years have worn away their efficacy. Alarmingly, there are now a greater number of guns in Australia than before the Port Arthur shooting, with some individuals in urban areas owning arsenals numbering in the hundreds.

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

The Road Ahead: Announced Reforms

Since the Bondi attack, there have been numerous declarations regarding strengthened gun laws. New South Wales in particular will shortly introduce a package of reforms to mitigate the collective risk from firearms. The federal government has proposed a new gun buyback, and there is potential for a countrywide gun database, notwithstanding the inherent challenges of coordinating state and federal governments.

All of this are only possible if the nation acts in unison. As noted, when it comes to gun control, the country is dependent on its least stringent jurisdiction. This is the very nature of the Australian federation – laws in one state are much less meaningful if they can be avoided with a journey across a state line.

Addressing Common Arguments

There is the inevitable response that "firearms are not the killers, people kill people". This is true in the same sense that planes don't transport people, aviators do. Yes, aircraft require operators, but it would be quite challenging for a captain to transport 500 people internationally without the aircraft. The horrific violence seen at Bondi would be extremely difficult without guns, and would have been significantly less lethal if the accused individuals had been denied access to the firearms they possessed.

Weighing Need and Safety

There are legitimate needs for some Australians to own guns. Managing livestock or controlling vermin in rural areas is incredibly hard without them. A complete removal of guns from the country is impractical, as in some cases they are essential tools.

What we can do – what we must do – is to guarantee that firearm legislation are updated to accurately reflect the world we live in today. Australia's laws have historically been the envy of the world, but the passage of years has done its work and the nation is less secure as it once was. It is critical to take the lessons of Bondi to heart, and ensure that coming Australians are as protected as previous generations have been.

A friend 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 keep itself safe. However horrific as the incident was, there is an aspiration that it can serve as the final tragedy the nation experiences.