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In the aftermath of the horrific incident at Bondi, Australia is facing several critical reckonings. We are seeing a long-overdue national spotlight on antisemitism, an persistent concern about public safety, and questions about the way such an tragedy could occur. But, as viewed of a public health expert and Jewish Australian, the most important discussion we are finally having centers on firearms.

Ten Years of Cautions and a Proven Solution

Public health experts have been sounding alarms about guns for at least a decade. Following the events of the Port Arthur tragedy, Australians came together and enacted a suite of reforms to curb gun violence across the country. And it worked. Before 1996, the nation witnessed approximately one large-scale firearm incident per year. In the decades since, there have been extremely rare major events, with none reaching the death toll of the shootings in the 1980s and 1990s.

The Bondi Attack and the Function of Existing Laws

Even during the Bondi tragedy, the nation's gun laws were not entirely useless. It has been suggested the individuals involved possessed with manually-operated long guns and a straight-pull shotgun. These firearms can only fire a single bullet at a time, necessitating a physical action to ready the subsequent shot. While these guns are capable of being discharged quite quickly with lethal results, they remain significantly less rapid and less efficient than the high-capacity, semi-automatic rifles frequently used in international attacks. The number of deaths at Bondi would've been far higher if more advanced firearms had been accessible.

Stopping another Bondi demands unity across all states. And unfortunately, there are already fissures in the facade.

Legislation Under Strain

Yet, the horrific consequences of the attack reveals that existing gun laws are inadequate. Crafted in the late 1990s with the best of intentions, years have worn away their efficacy. Concerningly, there are now a greater number of guns in Australia than prior to the Port Arthur shooting, with some individuals in cities reportedly holding collections of hundreds of weapons.

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

The Road Ahead: Announced Reforms

Since the Bondi attack, there have been multiple announcements regarding strengthened firearm legislation. 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 gun buyback, and there is hope for a national firearms registry, despite the inherent challenges of coordinating state and federal jurisdictions.

All of this are feasible provided that the nation acts in unison. As stated, regarding gun control, the country is only as strong as its weakest link. This is the reality of the Australian federation – laws in one state are easily circumvented if they can be bypassed with a journey across a border.

Addressing Common Objections

We hear the predictable response that "firearms are not the killers, individuals are". This is accurate in the identical way that aircraft do not fly passengers, pilots do. Yes, aircraft require operators, but it would be quite challenging for a captain to transport 500 people overseas without the aircraft. The horrific violence seen at Bondi would be all but impossible without firearms, and would have been far less damaging if the accused individuals had not had access to the weapons they used.

Weighing Need and Security

There are legitimate needs for some Australians to own guns. Managing livestock or culling pests in many places is extremely difficult without them. A total ban of guns from the country is impractical, as in some cases they are essential tools.

What we can do – the imperative action – is to ensure that firearm legislation are modernized to accurately reflect the society we live in today. Australia's laws 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 take the lessons of Bondi to heart, and make certain that future generations are equally safe as previous generations have been.

As one commentator remarked after the Bondi events, "such tragedies just don't happen here". They don't, 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.