FIREARMS INJURIES

The Public Health Association of Australia notes that:

1. During the period 1979-87 there was an average of 689 deaths per year due to firearms in Australia, accounting for 8.7% of all injury deaths. Of these, about 77% were suicides, 15% were homicides, and 6% were unintentional shootings. Firearm deaths are the third most common cause of injury-related deaths in at least one State (NSW).
2. Almost all firearm suicides occur among males, with a peak in rates among young males (15- 34 years) and another peak among older males (64+ years). The rate of suicide using a firearm is higher among rural than urban dwellers. Suicide has been found to be more impulsive in young males than in other groups.
3. More than one third of all reported murders in Australia are committed using a firearm. Those killed are most commonly a family member (usually a female spouse) or friend of the murderer. In many cases, the close proximity of a firearm contributes to the outcome of the attempt. Very few homicides are committed by persons with a history of treatment for mental illness.
4. The Australian police forces estimate that there are 3.5 to 4 million firearms in Australia in the possession of 1.5 million owners. On average, about one quarter of Australian households possess a gun. The rate of firearm possession is higher in rural than in urban areas.

   The Public Health Association of Australia believes that:

5. Firearms injuries occur due to a combination of the availability of the firearm and the motivation for use; both factors need to be addressed to reduce firearms injuries.
6. Ownership of firearms should be permitted only for those with genuine reasons to do so. “Personal protection” should not be regarded as an acceptable reason. There are no acceptable reasons for members of the public to possess military-style (automatic repeat-fire) firearms and handguns.
7. A range of programs is required to address the risk factors for intentional and unintentional use of firearms in injury, including both public and professional education and improvements in services. The design of such programs should be based on scientific evidence available in the literature or gathered by research. These programs should be closely targeted to those groups most at risk and be subject to rigorous evaluation.

   The Public Health Association of Australia resolves that:

8. The Executive Committee and Branches will urge Commonwealth, State and Territory governments to consider prohibiting all handguns and military-style firearms from importation, ownership and use in Australia by members of the public.
9. The Executive Committee and Branches will remind Commonwealth, State and Territory governments about:
   • the need for strong and effective nationally uniform legislation controlling the sale and purchase, ownership, storage, transport, use and disposal of firearms and ammunition, with the greatest restrictions placed on handguns and military-style weapons; ammunition and firearms should be stored in separate secured (locked) places; transport of firearms should only be permitted in locked containers in car boots or locked vehicles; and use should be permitted only by those licensed to own a firearm, and according to established rules of safe firearm use;
   • the need for “community armouries” at police stations where firearm owners are required to store their firearms' firing mechanism or the whole firearm between uses;
   • the need to grant licences to firearms owners only if they establish that they have an acceptable reason to own and use a firearm. Acceptable reasons should be limited to occupational uses and vermin control. Sporting uses and collectors should be strictly controlled (the former only for members of approved shooters groups);
   • the need for a “cooling off” period for intending firearms buyers during which police check the buyer's background;
   • the need for complete national documentation of firearms, dealers, sales and owners (ie. registration of firearms and licensing of owners) so that firearm ownership can be measured and individual owners assessed and firearms traced;
   • the need for mandatory confiscation by police of firearms from households in which interpersonal violence has occurred, and revocation of firearm licenses held; and
   • the need for mandatory education for shooters by police regarding the safe storage, transport and use of firearms (and demonstration of proficiency).
10. The Executive Committee and Branches will urge Commonwealth, State and Territory governments to address the risk factors for intentional violence, in particular:
    • the need for preventive mental health services for suicide prevention, including programs to teach professionals in such fields as education, nursing, medicine and law enforcement how to recognise and refer those at high risk for suicide; and
    • the need for greater efforts to prevent domestic violence (as detailed in the PHA Policy on this issue, 1990 AGM).

References

1. Centers for Disease Control. Position Papers from Third National Injury Conference. Department of Health and Human Services. Denver, Colorado. 22-25 April, 1991
2. Chappel D. (Ed). Firearms and Violence in Australia.
3. Trends and Issues in crime and criminal justice. Australian Institute of Criminology. No. 10. February 1988
4. Couchman A. Domestic Violence in Weapons and Violence in Australia. 2 ed. Gun Control Australia Inc. 1990
5. Ellard J. Guns and violence in Australia (letter). Med J Aust 153. 16 July 1990
6. Harding R. Firearms and Violence in Australian Life. University of Western Australia Press. 1981
7. Injury Advisory Group, NSW Health Department. Firearm Injuries in NSW. NSW Public Health Bulletin. 2, No. 11. November 1991
8. Matka E. Domestic Violence in NSW. NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research. Contemporary Issues in Crime and Justice. NSW Attorney General's Department. Issue No. 12, March 1991
9. National Injury Surveillance Unit.
   Shooting Deaths. Australian Injury Prevention Bulletin. No. 1, July 1991
   Firearm death in Australia: 26-year trends. Australian Injury Prevention Bulletin. No. 2, October 1991
   
10. NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research.
    Accidental Shootings. NSW Department of the Attorney-General and of Justice. Statistical Report 1, Series 2, April 1975
    Homicide. Crime and Justice Bulletin. NSW Attorney-General's Department, Issue No. 5, April 1988
    Suicide. Contemporary Issues in Crime and Justice. NSW Attorney-General's Department, Issue No. 8, July 1990
    
11. Recommendations on firearm control in Weapons and Violence in Australia 2 ed. National Committee on Violence. Australian Institute of Criminology. Gun Control Australia Inc. 1990
12. Report of the Joint Select Committee upon Gun Law Reform. NSW Parliament, 15 October 1991
13. Wallace A. Guns in homicide - the social reality in Weapons and Violence in Australia 2 ed. Gun Control Australia Inc. 1990
14. Walpole B. Public Health Guide for Firearm Laws in Weapons and Violence in Australia 2 ed. Gun Control Australia Inc. 1990

Adopted at the 1992 Annual General Meeting of the Public Health Association of Australia.