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In the aftermath of the awful attack at Bondi, Australia is confronting multiple pressing conversations. We are seeing a much-needed national spotlight on anti-Jewish sentiment, an persistent concern about public safety, and inquiries about the way such an tragedy could happen. But, from the perspective of a public health expert and Australian Jew, the paramount discussion we are now having centers on firearms.

Ten Years of Cautions and a Successful Solution

Public health experts have been issuing warnings about guns for at least a ten-year period. In the wake of the Port Arthur massacre, Australians united and implemented a suite of reforms to reduce gun violence across the country. The strategy succeeded. Prior to 1996, the nation experienced approximately one large-scale firearm incident per year. In the decades since, there have been vanishingly few major events, with none reaching the death toll of the shootings in the 1980s and 1990s.

This Recent Tragedy and the Function of Existing Laws

Amidst the Bondi events, the nation's gun laws were partially effective. It has been suggested the alleged attackers possessed with bolt-action rifles and a straight-pull shotgun. These weapons can only fire a one round at a time, necessitating a physical action to chamber the subsequent shot. Although these guns can be fired quite quickly with lethal results, they remain significantly less rapid and more cumbersome than the large-magazine, semi-automatic rifles commonplace in international mass shootings. The number of deaths at Bondi could have been much greater if different weapons had been available.

Preventing another Bondi requires national cohesion. Regrettably, there are already cracks in the facade.

Legislation Under Strain

However, the terrible toll of the incident demonstrates that existing gun laws are failing. Designed in the late 1990s with the best of intentions, decades have worn away their effectiveness. Alarmingly, there are currently a greater number of guns in Australia than before the Port Arthur shooting, with some individuals in cities reportedly holding collections numbering in the hundreds.

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

The Road Ahead: Announced Changes

Since the Bondi attack, there have been numerous announcements regarding strengthened firearm legislation. New South Wales in particular will soon enact a package of measures to reduce the public danger from firearms. The federal government has announced a new gun buyback, and there is hope for a national firearms registry, despite the complexities of coordinating state and federal governments.

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

Countering Frequent Arguments

There is the inevitable argument that "guns don't kill people, individuals are". This is true in the same sense that planes don't transport people, pilots do. Certainly, planes can't fly themselves, but it would be virtually impossible for a captain to transport 500 people overseas without the aircraft. The horrific violence seen at Bondi would be extremely difficult without firearms, and would have been significantly less lethal if the accused individuals had not had access to the weapons they possessed.

Balancing Necessity and Safety

It is acknowledged there are legitimate needs for some Australians to possess firearms. Farm work or culling pests in rural areas is incredibly hard without them. A total ban of firearms from the country is not feasible, as in some cases they are indispensable.

What we can do – what we must do – is to ensure that gun laws are updated to better match the society we live in today. Australia's laws have long been the envy of the world, but the passage of years has done its work and the nation is no longer as safe as it once was. It is critical to learn from the tragedy of Bondi to heart, and ensure that coming Australians are as protected as past generations have been.

As one friend observed after the Bondi attack, "things like this just don't happen here". They don't, but only because the country has collectively worked to maintain its security. However horrific as the attack was, there is hope that it can become the last one the nation ever sees.