Uğur BECERİKLİ
The clause giving green light to get arm license with one physician report was withdrawn. However, lowering the age for the acquisition of shotguns including pump-rifles to 18 is on the agenda.
A worrying amendment was made to the new Draft Law about firearms on the agenda of the Turkish Grand National Assembly. With the new addendum to the draft, the age for the acquisition of license for the shotguns including pump-rifles too used at many attacks was lowered from 21 to 18. The Internal Affairs Subcommittee completed the works on the Firearms Draft Law. The committee withdrew the articles authorizing the Police and MIT (Intelligence Service) to carry heavy weapons and the permit to get license for arms with one physician report which has been heavily criticized previously by the public opinion. However, an addition to the article no.7 was made giving green light to grant license for the shotguns to those at the age of 18. With the amendment, the age for the acquisition of license for smoothbores, guns using less than 5 cartridges and simple arms was lowered to 18. The current practice of law limits this age to 21 as imposed for the guns and other arms. This amendment was criticized by the opposition and the non governmental organizations. This amendment will be debated at the General Assembly too.
Justification: The demand is high
Selami Uzun, the chairman of the committee and Ak Party deputy, stated this amendment was made because of high demand. Uzun said that they received many applications mainly from nomads and shepherds and these persons who live/work in rural areas already own shotguns. “This practice doesn’t encourage armament. Just the opposite, we will thus establish a control mechanism” he added. The draft law foresees also pardon for the shotguns without license. As per the temporary addendum, those who own shotguns without license will be granted license in case they apply in one year as of the enforcement date of the law. The license will be granted without asking the source of the arms and where they are procured from. Thus, all arms introduced illegally to Turkey within the category of shotguns will be legalized.
‘The age should rise’
CHP Deputy Hulusi Güvel, a member of the subcommittee, raised his objections against lowering the age for the acquisition of shotguns to 18. Güvel said they don’t approve this amendment and added: “We objected to this issue at the meeting. A youth of 18 years old is someone who hardly left childhood, a high school student yet. Unwanted events may occur under the circumstances of Turkey if you give arms to children who didn’t even do their military service. We attached a statement of opposition and we want it to retain it at the age of 21 like in the past. This age limit should even rise to 25 if possible. This practice will encourage the ownership of arms.”
‘Pump-rifle cannot be seen as shotgun’
Ali Sönmez, General Bookkeeper at the Hunters Association of Ankara, indicated that although pump-rifle is seen as shotgun, it’s actually a near combat weapon. Sönmez told the following: “There are pump-rifles which fire 3 cartridges but most of them fire 5 cartridges. If you ask me, they are not shotguns. Because each times you have to aim again at the target and load bullets. They are widespread because of the influence of the American films. You cannot give these arms to a 18 year old boy. They can shot people around even if they use it for hunting. They are not as safer as the half automatic arms. They should be given to those who are trained to use them, over the age 20 and who did their military service and more or less experienced.”
“Not easy to control anger”
The psychiatrist Ayhan Akcan, from the Umut Foundation, who pursues activities against armament and whose reports were used in the process of preparation of the law, stated the following: “We studied one thousand 600 incidents in Istanbul. At the crimes committed with arms, half of those killed, killing and injured consist of those under the age group 28. It’s the same in the world literature too. The age groups of 18 and 21 are risky. There are countries like Germany, Brazil which raised the age limit to 25. A youth of 18 years old cannot control his anger and there is potential to express his anger. The risk is higher. If the age rises to 25, the crimes committed with arms fall 20 per cent; the most appropriate age is 28. Someone 18 years old should not be allowed to carry guns.”
(sabah.com.tr, February 21st, 2010)