Dear Editor
The Democratic Alliance (DA) will not allow a Bill that strips firearms from law-abiding citizens, especially not in a climate where violent crime runs rampant and SAPS is failing to keep South Africans safe. Any attempt to disarm responsible citizens while criminals remain armed will be opposed outright.
It is therefore deeply alarming that key voices are being excluded from the process around the Firearms Control Amendment Bill currently before NEDLAC.
South Africans deserve a police service that takes illegal guns off our streets and fixes the broken Central Firearms Register. They do not deserve more laws that punish responsible people while giving criminals the upper hand.
For more than 40 days, NEDLAC has been sitting on this Bill without speaking to a single stakeholder from the firearms or security sectors. Organisations such as the South African Gunowners’ Association, Gun Owners of South Africa, the Safe Citizen Campaign, accredited trainers, sport shooting bodies, and private security have all been sidelined. That is not consultation. It is secrecy.
It appears that the Bill now before NEDLAC is a reworked version of the 2021 proposal, which was rejected outright by more than 118 000 South Africans. If, however, it is the same Bill, the DA will reject it again.
If it is new, the DA will reject it if it undermines the constitutional right of South Africans to safety and security. Either way, we will not support measures that disarm responsible citizens while empowering criminals.
This mirrors the recent PSIRA debacle, where the ANC tried to force through harsh regulations for the private security industry without public participation. Only public pressure stopped it. Now the same playbook is being used with firearms legislation.
Industry insiders warn that the amendments aim to:
- Cut down private firearm ownership;
Make it harder to obtain self-defence licences;
Tighten restrictions on the private security sector; and
Impose new, costly requirements on lawful owners.
None of this will stop violent crime or illegal gun networks. What it will do is weaken citizens’ ability to defend themselves while leaving criminals untouchable.
The DA calls on NEDLAC to open these deliberations immediately. If not, the DA will take this fight to the public and to Parliament.
Regards
Ian Cameron MP
DA Deputy Spokesperson on Police