The Police State Comes Closer
A guest post by David Leyonhjelm
Legislation currently before the South Australian parliament introduces a new concept in law enforcement - Firearms Prohibition Orders. It is a further step in the advance of the police state.
The SA Minister for Police says the legislation is a response to the Tonic Nightclub shootings last year and “targets criminals such as criminal bikie gangs and their associates that resort too readily to violence to advance their illegal activities.”
He also says it represents a “first step in a process of refocusing the attention of police from regulation of the legitimate firearms community toward combating criminals who wield firearms in the pursuit of their criminal endeavours.”
The explanation to the Bill says that the focus should be on the behaviour of persons rather than the firearm itself. That all sounds good. Sporting shooters have long argued that the focus of the law should be on those who use guns for illegal purposes, not those who harm nobody else. However, as with similar laws involving drugs and terrorism, the consequences go well beyond what is intended. What the government says and what it is doing are quite different.
The key purpose of the Firearms Prohibition Order (FPO) is to give the police a new tool to control bikie gangs by focusing on access to guns. However, the legislation does not define a ‘criminal bikie’ and FPOs are not confined to them. Rather, it relies on the term ‘fit and proper person’. Thus, apart from applying to anyone with a known history of serious crime or violence, FPOs can also be applied to anyone suspected of being a danger to life or property if they possess a firearm. Life includes their own.
The Bill places a legal onus on medical professionals to report to the Registrar anyone they consider ‘may’ be a risk to themselves or others if they possessed firearms. They are indemnified if they get it wrong.
