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Following the tragedy of the awful incident at Bondi, Australia is confronting several critical reckonings. There is a much-needed national focus on anti-Jewish sentiment, an ongoing concern about national security, and inquiries about how such an event could happen. But, from the perspective of a health professional and Jewish Australian, the most important dialogue we are now having centers on firearms.

Ten Years of Warnings and a Successful Response

Public health experts have been sounding alarms about firearms for at least a ten-year period. Following the events of the Port Arthur massacre, Australians united and implemented a series of measures to reduce gun violence across the country. The strategy succeeded. Before 1996, the nation witnessed roughly one mass shooting per year. Over the following years, there have been extremely rare major events, with none reaching the fatalities of the incidents in the 1980s and 1990s.

The Bondi Attack and the Function of Existing Laws

Even during the Bondi events, the nation's gun laws were not entirely useless. Reports indicate the alleged attackers might have been armed with bolt-action rifles and a straight-pull shotgun. These weapons are limited to firing a one round at a time, necessitating a physical action to chamber the subsequent shot. Although these guns are capable of being discharged quite quickly with lethal results, they remain far slower and more cumbersome than the high-capacity, semi-automatic rifles frequently used in international mass shootings. The casualty count at Bondi would've been far higher if more advanced weapons had been accessible.

Preventing another Bondi demands national cohesion. And unfortunately, there are already cracks in the united front.

A System Showing Weakness

However, the terrible consequences of the attack demonstrates that existing gun laws are inadequate. Designed in the late 1990s with the best of intentions, decades have eroded their effectiveness. Concerningly, there are currently more firearms in Australia than before the Port Arthur shooting, with some individuals in cities reportedly holding arsenals numbering in the hundreds.

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

The Path Forward: Announced Changes

Since the Bondi attack, there have been multiple declarations regarding new gun laws. The state of NSW in particular will soon introduce a package of measures to mitigate the public danger from firearms. The national government has proposed a fresh firearm surrender scheme, and there is hope for a national firearms registry, despite the inherent challenges of aligning state and federal governments.

All of this are only possible if the nation works together. As stated, when it comes to gun control, the country is dependent on its weakest link. This is the reality of the Australian federation – regulations in one state are easily circumvented if they can be bypassed with a journey across a border.

Countering Common Arguments

We hear the predictable response that "firearms are not the killers, people kill people". This is true in the same sense that planes don't transport people, pilots do. Certainly, aircraft require operators, but it would be virtually impossible for a captain to move 500 people overseas without the plane. The horrific violence seen at Bondi would be extremely difficult without guns, and would have been far less damaging if the accused individuals had not had access to the firearms they used.

Weighing Necessity and Safety

It is acknowledged there are legitimate needs for some Australians to own firearms. Farm work or controlling vermin in many places is incredibly hard without them. A complete removal of firearms from the country is impractical, as in certain contexts they are indispensable.

What we can do – what we must do – is to ensure that gun laws are updated to accurately reflect the society we live in today. Australia's legislation have long been the envy of the world, but time and distance has done its work and the nation is less secure as it once was. It is critical to learn from the tragedy of Bondi to heart, and ensure 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 only because the country has made concerted efforts to keep itself safe. However horrific as the incident was, there is hope that it can become the final tragedy the nation experiences.