Firearms Act

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Jan 1, 2001

On January 1, 2001, the next-to-final stage of implementation of the Firearms Act comes into effect in Canada. The law, passed December 5, 1995, was proposed originally in response to the murder of 14 female engineering students at the Montreal Polytechnical Institute in 1986 by a gunman who committed suicide at the scene. See David Newman's Quatorze Reves . The law requires Canadians to purchase a possession licence (or have a valid FAC, Firearms Acquisition Certificate) by December 31, 2000, and to register all the firearms they currently own (long guns as well as handguns which had to be registered in the past)by December 31, 2002. It changes procedures for acquiring guns and ammunition and for transferring ownership. It reclassifies restricted small handguns (Saturday night specials) to prohibited. Regulations apply also to merchants, pawn shops, and museums where guns are stored, and to visitors to Canada. Gun safety training and safe unloaded locked-storage measures are required as before. But more care will be taken to check criminal records and to cross-reference names with the FIP (Firearms Interest to Police) database that records tips (1-800-731-4000) from concerned citizens who report gun-owners they feel pose a threat to the public.

Proponents of the Firearms Act want to prevent crimes like "the Montreal massacre" and others where firearms have been misused. They believe that long gun (rifle and shotgun) registration will help law enforcement agencies know who has guns and where they're located. The law provides a voice for non-owners to be consulted--current and previous spouses are contacted; the signature of spouse is required at time of purchase for weapons to be stored in the home. It empowers victims of abuse, threats, intimidation, stalking by encouraging them to use the spousal notification line to report such crimes and to inform police if the abuser has access to firearms. Registration may help return stolen property to its rightful owner and will hold owners of improperly stored stolen weapons responsible. It may reduce the illegal weapons trade by giving police more authority. Thus the law offers a kind of control combined with a kind of deterrence. But, it would be foolish for police to assume during any tactical operation that because no weapons are registered at an address, none will be present. And outlawed purchasers will find alternate routes to acquire the firearms they seek.

Opponents of the Firearms Act argue that "guns don't kill; people kill." That "criminals do not respect laws and will not comply." They point out that, although gun violence is predominantly an urban issue, the new law is a financial hardship and a serious imposition on rural residents who use their rifles and shotguns for hunting food and for protection from dangerous wildlife. (Exemptions are allowed for Sustenance Hunters.) Thus, this legislation further divides the rural/urban split in Canadian society. It is seen as an emotional over-reaction by people who, knowing nothing of rural culture and gun sports, have pressured government to impose their opinions upon others whose voice is ignored. The suggestion that gun ownership equals gun crime is insulting to these law-abiding citizens who see no reason to change the rules. The imposition may trigger hunters who feel disenfranchised to disrespect the law or to refuse to comply as a form of civil disobedience. Thus a fiat from Ottawa will suddenly have criminalized a large group of previously law-abiding citizens. A smaller percentage of owners suspect registration is the first step to confiscation and outlawing all firearms.

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