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In the aftermath of the horrific attack at Bondi, Australia is confronting several pressing reckonings. There is a long-overdue national spotlight on antisemitism, an persistent concern about public safety, and inquiries about the way such an tragedy could happen. But, from the perspective of a health professional and Australian Jew, the paramount discussion we are now having revolves around firearms.

A Decade of Warnings and a Successful Response

Public health specialists have been issuing warnings about firearms for a minimum of a decade. Following the events of the Port Arthur tragedy, Australians came together and implemented a series of reforms to reduce gun violence across the country. And it worked. Before 1996, the nation experienced approximately one mass shooting per year. Over the following years, there have been vanishingly few major events, with none approaching the fatalities of the incidents in the 1980s and 1990s.

The Bondi Tragedy and the Role of Existing Regulations

Amidst the Bondi events, the nation's gun laws were partially effective. It has been suggested the individuals involved possessed with bolt-action rifles and a straight-pull shotgun. These weapons can only fire a one round at a time, requiring a manual operation to chamber the next round. While these guns are capable of being discharged quite quickly with devastating effect, they remain significantly less rapid and less efficient than the high-capacity, self-loading rifles frequently used in overseas mass shootings. The casualty count at Bondi could have been much greater if more advanced firearms had been accessible.

Preventing another Bondi requires unity across all states. And unfortunately, we have already seen fissures in the united front.

Legislation Showing Weakness

However, the terrible toll of the attack reveals that existing gun laws are inadequate. Crafted in the late 1990s with the best of intentions, years have eroded their efficacy. Alarmingly, there are currently more firearms in Australia than prior to the Port Arthur massacre, with some citizens in cities owning arsenals of hundreds of weapons.

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

The Road Ahead: Proposed Reforms

In the time after the Bondi attack, there have been numerous declarations regarding new firearm legislation. The state of NSW specifically will soon enact a suite of reforms to mitigate the collective risk from firearms. The national government has proposed a new gun buyback, and there is potential for a national firearms registry, despite the inherent challenges of coordinating state and federal governments.

These measures are feasible provided that the nation works together. As noted, regarding gun control, the country is only as strong as its least stringent jurisdiction. This is the very nature of the Australian system – regulations in one state are easily circumvented if they can be bypassed with a journey across a border.

Countering Frequent Arguments

We hear the predictable argument that "firearms are not the killers, people kill people". This is true in the identical way that aircraft do not fly passengers, pilots do. Certainly, aircraft require operators, but it would be virtually impossible for a pilot to transport 500 people internationally without the aircraft. The horrific violence witnessed at Bondi would be all but impossible without firearms, and would have been significantly less lethal if the alleged terrorists had been denied access to the firearms they used.

Weighing Need and Safety

There are legitimate reasons for some Australians to own guns. Managing livestock or controlling vermin in rural areas is extremely difficult without them. A complete removal of firearms from the country is impractical, as in certain contexts they are essential tools.

The achievable goal – the imperative action – is to guarantee that gun laws are updated to better match the world 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 no longer as safe as it once was. It is critical to take the lessons of Bondi to heart, and make certain that coming Australians are as protected as previous generations have been.

A friend observed after the Bondi attack, "such tragedies just don't happen here". They don't, but solely due to the fact that the country has made concerted efforts to maintain its security. However horrific as the attack was, there is an aspiration that it can serve as the final tragedy the nation ever sees.