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In the aftermath of the awful attack at Bondi, Australia is facing several pressing conversations. We are seeing a much-needed national focus on antisemitism, an ongoing concern about national security, and questions about how such an event could happen. However, as viewed of a health professional and Australian Jew, the most important discussion we are finally having centers on firearms.

Ten Years of Cautions and a Proven Solution

Public health specialists have been issuing warnings about firearms for at least a decade. In the wake of the Port Arthur tragedy, Australians united and implemented a series of reforms to curb gun violence across the country. And it worked. Prior to 1996, the nation experienced approximately one large-scale firearm incident per year. Over the following years, there have been extremely rare significant tragedies, with none reaching the fatalities of the incidents in the 1980s and 1990s.

This Recent Attack and the Role of Existing Regulations

Amidst the Bondi events, the nation's gun laws were not entirely useless. Reports indicate the alleged attackers possessed with manually-operated long guns and at least one straight-pull shotgun. These weapons are limited to firing a one round at a time, necessitating a manual operation to ready the subsequent shot. While these guns are capable of being discharged quite quickly with devastating effect, they remain far slower and less efficient than the large-magazine, self-loading rifles commonplace in international mass shootings. The number of deaths at Bondi would've been far higher if more advanced firearms had been available.

Preventing another Bondi requires national cohesion. And unfortunately, there are already fissures in the facade.

Legislation Under Strain

However, the horrific toll of the attack demonstrates that existing firearm regulations are inadequate. Designed in the late 1990s with the best of intentions, decades have worn away their efficacy. Alarmingly, there are now more firearms in Australia than prior to the Port Arthur massacre, with some citizens in cities reportedly holding collections of hundreds of weapons.

We have been overconfident and it has cost us terribly.

The Road Forward: Announced Changes

Since the Bondi attack, there have been multiple declarations regarding new gun laws. The state of NSW in particular will shortly enact a suite of measures to reduce the public danger posed by firearms. The federal government has proposed a new firearm surrender scheme, and there is hope for a national firearms registry, notwithstanding the inherent challenges of coordinating state and federal governments.

These measures are feasible if the nation works together. As stated, when it comes to firearm laws, the country is dependent on its least stringent jurisdiction. This is the reality of the Australian federation – regulations in one state are much less meaningful if they can be avoided with a journey across a border.

Addressing Frequent Arguments

There is the inevitable argument that "guns don't kill people, individuals are". This is true in the same sense that planes don't transport people, aviators do. Certainly, aircraft require operators, but it would be virtually impossible for a captain to move 500 people internationally without the aircraft. The mass slaughter witnessed at Bondi would be extremely difficult without firearms, and would have been significantly less lethal if the alleged terrorists had been denied access to the firearms they possessed.

Balancing Necessity and Security

There are legitimate reasons for some Australians to own guns. Farm work or culling pests in many places is incredibly hard without them. A total ban of firearms from the country is impractical, as in certain contexts they are indispensable.

The achievable goal – the imperative action – is to guarantee that gun laws are modernized to accurately reflect the world we live in today. Australia's laws have historically been the envy of the world, but the passage of years has done its work and the nation is less secure as it once was. It is vital to take the lessons of Bondi seriously, and ensure that future generations are as protected as past generations have been.

As one friend remarked after the Bondi events, "such tragedies just don't happen here". They don't, but only because the country has made concerted efforts to keep itself safe. As nightmarish as the attack was, there is an aspiration that it can become the last one the nation experiences.