Gun Law Received Green Light from Committee
The parliamentary Interior Committee approved the tightening of gun laws on Thursday, paving the way for a decision in the National Council's September session. After the review, there were only minor formal changes, as Interior Minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP) announced after the meeting. The law brings, among other things, changes to the minimum age for acquiring weapons, as well as better data exchange between authorities.
Review of Graz School Shooting
Karner recalled the reason for the tightening, the school shooting at a Graz school last June, which will always remain a terrible memory. State Secretary Jörg Leichtfried (SPÖ) emphasized that the government had followed the students' call to take action.
Criticism from the Freedom Party was rejected by the Interior Ministry. Karner saw himself supported by the Styrian Governor Mario Kunasek (FPÖ) and regretted that the federal Freedom Party apparently saw it differently. For Leichtfried, the FPÖ's no shows that they no longer want to participate constructively, even where a national consensus should be a matter of course.
At the same time, the Minister and State Secretary emphasized that access to weapons would not be blocked. They are not closing the door, but are looking more closely at who gets the key, Leichtfried stated. Karner emphasized that hunters are exempt from the tightening, as they have to undergo appropriate training. According to his own account, the Interior Minister also received positive feedback at a meeting with hunters the day before, indicating that a pragmatic draft is in place.
FPÖ Against New Gun Law
The FPÖ reiterated its rejection of the new gun law at a press conference on Thursday. With the legislative initiative, the government would "shift its failures onto its own citizens" and place the entire population under general suspicion, said FPÖ General Secretary Christian Hafenecker. The new regulations would not have had any effect in the recent case of a homicide in Vienna last Tuesday, and the issue of illegal weapons is being ignored.
The Greens, on the other hand, welcomed the changes in the gun law but still saw too many exceptions. "Some of our central demands - such as higher age limits, stricter gun bans, and especially clinical-psychological assessments - are now part of the law," emphasized Agnes Sirkka Prammer, the Greens' spokesperson for internal affairs and security, in a statement. Her party will "advocate for even stricter rules in the future. Our goal: freedom from weapons instead of freedom for weapons in Austria."
(APA/Red)
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