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Following the tragedy of the awful attack at Bondi, Australia is facing multiple critical conversations. There is a long-overdue national focus on anti-Jewish sentiment, an ongoing concern about national security, and inquiries about the way such an tragedy could occur. However, as viewed of a health professional and Jewish Australian, the most important dialogue we are finally having revolves around firearms.

A Decade of Cautions and a Proven Response

Public health experts have been sounding alarms about guns for at least a decade. Following the events of the Port Arthur tragedy, Australians united and enacted a suite of reforms to curb gun violence nationwide. And it worked. Before 1996, the nation witnessed approximately one large-scale firearm incident per year. In the decades since, there have been vanishingly few major events, with none approaching the fatalities of the incidents in the 1980s and 1990s.

The Bondi Attack and the Function of Current Regulations

Amidst the Bondi events, the nation's firearm regulations were partially effective. Reports indicate the individuals involved possessed with bolt-action rifles and at least one straight-pull shotgun. These firearms are limited to firing a one round at a time, requiring a physical action to chamber the subsequent shot. Although these guns can be fired rapidly with lethal results, they remain significantly less rapid and less efficient than the large-magazine, semi-automatic rifles commonplace in international attacks. The casualty count at Bondi could have been much greater if more advanced weapons had been available.

Preventing another Bondi requires unity across all states. Regrettably, we have already seen fissures in the facade.

Legislation Under Strain

However, the terrible consequences 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 now a greater number of guns in Australia than before the Port Arthur massacre, with some citizens in urban areas owning collections numbering in the hundreds.

We have been overconfident and it has exacted a terrible price.

The Path Forward: Proposed Reforms

Since the Bondi tragedy, there have been numerous declarations regarding new firearm legislation. The state of NSW specifically will shortly enact a suite of measures to reduce the public danger posed by firearms. The federal government has proposed a new firearm surrender scheme, and there is hope for a national firearms registry, despite the inherent challenges of aligning state and federal governments.

These measures are feasible provided that the nation acts in unison. As noted, regarding gun control, the country is dependent on its weakest link. This is the very nature of the Australian federation – regulations in one state are easily circumvented if they can be bypassed with a short drive across a state line.

Countering Common Arguments

We hear the inevitable argument that "firearms are not the killers, individuals are". This is accurate in the identical way that aircraft do not fly passengers, aviators do. Certainly, aircraft require operators, but it would be quite challenging for a captain to transport 500 people overseas without the plane. The mass slaughter 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 Need and Security

There are legitimate reasons for some Australians to possess firearms. Farm work or culling pests in many places is incredibly hard without them. A total ban of guns from the country is impractical, as in certain contexts they are indispensable.

What we can do – the imperative action – is to guarantee that gun laws are updated to accurately reflect the society we live in today. Australia's laws have long been the admiration of the world, but time and distance 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 make certain that future generations are as protected as previous generations have been.

As one friend observed after the Bondi events, "things like this just don't happen here". They don't, but solely due to the fact that the country has collectively worked to keep itself safe. As nightmarish as the attack was, there is hope that it can become the last one the nation ever sees.