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In the aftermath of the awful incident at Bondi, Australia is facing several pressing conversations. We are seeing a much-needed national spotlight on antisemitism, an persistent concern about national security, and questions about how such an event could occur. However, from the perspective of a public health expert and Jewish Australian, the most important dialogue we are finally having revolves around firearms.

Ten Years of Warnings and a Proven Solution

Health experts have been issuing warnings about firearms for at least a ten-year period. In the wake of the Port Arthur massacre, Australians came together and implemented a series of reforms to curb gun violence nationwide. And it worked. Before 1996, the nation witnessed roughly one mass shooting 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.

The Bondi Tragedy and the Function of Current Laws

Even during the Bondi events, the nation's gun laws were not entirely useless. It has been suggested the individuals involved might have been armed with bolt-action rifles and at least one straight-pull shotgun. These firearms are limited to firing a single bullet at a time, requiring a physical action to ready the next round. While these guns are capable of being discharged rapidly with devastating effect, they remain significantly less rapid and more cumbersome than the high-capacity, self-loading rifles commonplace in international attacks. The number of deaths at Bondi would've been far higher if different firearms had been accessible.

Stopping a future Bondi requires national cohesion. And unfortunately, there are already fissures in the facade.

A System Showing Weakness

Yet, the horrific consequences of the incident reveals that existing firearm regulations are inadequate. Crafted in the late 1990s with the best of intentions, years have worn away their efficacy. Concerningly, there are now a greater number of guns in Australia than before the Port Arthur shooting, with some individuals in cities owning collections of hundreds of weapons.

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

The Path Forward: Announced Changes

In the time after the Bondi tragedy, there have been multiple declarations regarding strengthened gun laws. The state of NSW in particular will shortly introduce a package of reforms to mitigate the public danger from firearms. The national government has proposed a fresh gun buyback, and there is hope for a countrywide gun database, despite the inherent challenges of aligning state and federal jurisdictions.

These measures are only possible if the nation acts in unison. As noted, regarding firearm laws, the country is only as strong as its weakest link. This is the very nature of the Australian system – regulations in one state are much less meaningful if they can be avoided with a short drive across a state line.

Addressing Common Objections

We hear the inevitable response that "firearms are not the killers, people kill people". This is true in the same sense that aircraft do not fly passengers, aviators do. Certainly, aircraft require operators, but it would be quite challenging for a pilot to move 500 people overseas without the aircraft. 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 weapons they used.

Balancing Need and Safety

There are legitimate needs for some Australians to own firearms. Farm work or controlling vermin in many places is extremely difficult without them. A complete removal of firearms from the country is not feasible, as in certain contexts they are essential tools.

What we can do – what we must do – is to ensure that firearm legislation are modernized to accurately reflect the world we live in today. Australia's legislation have long been the envy of the world, but time and distance has taken a toll and the nation is no longer as safe as it once was. It is vital to take the lessons of Bondi to heart, and make certain that coming Australians are equally safe as past generations have been.

A friend remarked after the Bondi events, "things like this just don't happen here". This is true, but solely due to the fact that 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 last one the nation ever sees.