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In the aftermath of the horrific attack at Bondi, Australia is confronting multiple pressing reckonings. We are seeing a long-overdue national focus on anti-Jewish sentiment, an persistent worry about national security, and inquiries about how such an event could occur. However, from the perspective of a public health expert and Australian Jew, the most important discussion we are finally having centers on firearms.

A Decade of Cautions and a Successful Response

Public health specialists have been sounding alarms about firearms for at least a ten-year period. Following the events of the Port Arthur massacre, Australians came together and implemented a suite of reforms to reduce gun violence across the country. The strategy succeeded. Prior to 1996, the nation experienced roughly one large-scale firearm incident 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.

This Recent Tragedy and the Function of Existing Laws

Amidst the Bondi events, the nation's firearm regulations were not entirely useless. Reports indicate the individuals involved possessed with manually-operated long guns and a straight-pull shotgun. These firearms can only fire a one round at a time, requiring a manual operation to ready the subsequent shot. Although these guns can be fired rapidly with lethal results, they remain significantly less rapid and less efficient than the high-capacity, self-loading rifles frequently used in international mass shootings. The casualty count at Bondi would've been far higher if more advanced firearms had been accessible.

Stopping a future Bondi requires national cohesion. Regrettably, we have already seen cracks in the facade.

A System Under Strain

However, the terrible consequences of the incident reveals that current gun laws are inadequate. Designed in the late 1990s with the best of intentions, decades have eroded their efficacy. Alarmingly, there are currently more firearms in Australia than before the Port Arthur shooting, with some individuals in urban areas reportedly holding arsenals numbering in the hundreds.

The nation has grown overconfident and it has exacted a terrible price.

The Road Forward: Proposed Changes

In the time after the Bondi tragedy, there have been numerous announcements regarding new gun laws. The state of NSW specifically will shortly enact a package of measures to mitigate the collective risk posed by firearms. The federal government has announced a fresh firearm surrender scheme, and there is hope for a countrywide gun database, despite the inherent challenges of aligning state and federal governments.

All of this are only possible if the nation acts in unison. As noted, regarding gun control, the country is only as strong as its least stringent jurisdiction. This is the reality of the Australian federation – laws in one state are much less meaningful if they can be avoided with a short drive across a border.

Countering Frequent Objections

There is the predictable response that "guns don't kill people, people kill people". This is accurate in the same sense that aircraft do not fly passengers, aviators do. Yes, planes can't fly themselves, but it would be virtually impossible for a captain to move 500 people internationally without the aircraft. The horrific violence seen at Bondi would be all but impossible without firearms, and would have been significantly less lethal if the alleged terrorists had been denied access to the firearms they used.

Weighing Necessity and Safety

It is acknowledged there are legitimate reasons for some Australians to own firearms. Managing livestock or culling pests in rural areas is incredibly hard without them. A total ban of guns from the country is impractical, as in certain contexts they are indispensable.

What we can do – what we must do – is to ensure that firearm legislation are updated to better match the society we live in today. Australia's legislation have long been the admiration of the world, but time and distance has done its work and the nation is less secure as it previously was. It is critical to learn from the tragedy of Bondi to heart, and ensure that coming Australians are as protected as past generations have been.

As one commentator remarked after the Bondi attack, "things like this just don't happen here". This is true, but only because the country has collectively worked to maintain its security. However horrific as the attack was, there is an aspiration that it can become the final tragedy the nation experiences.