United States
The United States by far
has the strongest tradition of firearm ownership in the world. A number of gun
ownership advocates consider it a birthright and an essential part of the
nation’s heritage. The United States, with less than 5 percent of the world’s
population, has about 35-50 percent of the world’s civilian-owned guns. As of
2009, the United States had a population of 307 million people. Based on
production data from firearm manufacturers, there are roughly 300 million
firearms owned by civilians in the United States as of 2010. Of these, about
100 million are handguns.
The United States, while
it does have the highest rate of civilian-owned guns, is fairly low on the
overall world ranking when it comes to gun homicides. The three highest ranked
countries in firearm homicides per 100,000 people are Honduras, El Salvador and
Jamaica, respectively.
The Second Amendment of
the U.S. Constitution states: “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the
security of a Free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall
not be infringed.” Supreme Court rulings, citing this amendment, have upheld
the right of states to regulate firearms.
There are 10 types of
people who would be rejected from owning a firearm by a background check:
felons, fugitives, drug addicts, the mentally ill, illegal immigrants, some
legal immigrants, people who have renounced U.S. citizenship, people under
restraining orders, people convicted of domestic violence and anyone charged
with a crime that could bring more than a year in prison are ineligible. It is
illegal and punishable by up to 10 years in prison to sell or transfer any
firearm or ammunition to someone while “knowing” or having “reasonable cause to
believe” this person falls into one of these categories.
Yemen
Yemen’s gun culture is
that firearms are not only used for self-defense, but also used in
celebratory fire. Guns also had a higher demand after the 2011 uprisings and
other political insecurities throughout the country. Owning a firearm in Yemen
is seen in a positive light, as society views it as a symbol of manhood and
leadership. Tribesmen even carry their firearms to mediate disputes between
other tribal leaders.
Guns first entered Yemen
through colonial trade, dating back to the Ottoman entry into Yemen in the
mid-16th century. British colonization of the South of the country, and later
Egyptian and Russian attempts to control—in varying degrees—parts of the
country meant that foreign powers brought with them their own interests,
funding and weapons. In the large rural swaths of the country, local, tribal
law oftentimes holds more weight than state power.
In 1992, a law was
passed with the intention of regulating the carrying of fire arms and ammunition.
This law allowed for weapons to be carried in major cities, including Sana’a,
as long as they were registered.
“In Yemen, no matter if
you’re rich or poor, you must have guns. Even if it’s just one piece,” insists
Abdul Wahab al-Ammari, a tribal sheikh from Yemen’s Ibb province who resides in
Sana’a, citing self-protection as the primary driver of gun ownership. “I have
maybe 14 high powered weapons, and 3 handguns [at home].”
Weapons remain a central
aspect of daily life in urban and rural areas alike. Weddings and other
momentous occasions are invariably punctuated by joyous outbursts of gunfire.
For example, during the Arab Spring uprisings in Yemen, supporters of former
President Ali Abdullah Saleh were infamous for filling the streets with a spray
of bullets whenever they received good news. But, in the end, bullets have to
land somewhere. In 2011 alone, hundreds were injured or killed by celebratory
gunfire.
Serbia
The estimated rate of
private gun ownership in Serbia is 37.821 3 firearms per 100 people. Serbia has
some of the more relaxed gun laws in Europe. Applicants for a gun owner’s
license in Serbia are required to establish a genuine reason to possess a
firearm, for example self-defense, hunting, target shooting, collection, and
certain employment-related reasons
Weapons are regulated by
“Weapons and Ammunition Law”. Rifles, shotguns and handguns are all allowed to
civilians. Handgun ownership is allowed, but the licensing is strict. Concealed
carry permits are available to approved handgun owners, but are extremely hard
to obtain – one has to prove to the police that his or her life is in imminent
danger, and even then, a license is far from guaranteed.
In essence, people over
18 are allowed to own guns, but must be issued a permit. People with a criminal
history, mental disorders, history of alcohol and illegal substance abuse,
cannot be issued a permit. There is a thorough background check prior to
license approval. Police have the last word on the matter, and there is no
court appeal possible. When at home, the guns must be kept in a “safe place”,
and owner irresponsibility could lead to gun confiscation by police.
Fully automatic weapons
and non-lethal self-defense devices are prohibited. Number of guns that may be
owned is not limited. Every gun transaction is recorded by police. There is no
rifle caliber restriction (Must be smaller than .50BMG, however). Rifle and
handgun ammunition is severely restricted; there is a 60 round limit per rifle,
per year, except rounds shot at ranges. Shotgun ammo is unrestricted and shell
reloading is allowed, but rifle and handgun ammo reloading is not. There is
growing pressure, especially from sport shooters associations, to change the
law in this regard.
Switzerland
Switzerland trails
behind only the U.S, Yemen and Serbia in the number of guns per capita; between
2.3 million and 4.5 million military and private firearms are estimated to be
in circulation in a country of only 8 million people.
The Swiss are very
serious not only about their right to own weapons but also to carry them around
in public. Because of this general acceptance and even pride in gun ownership,
nobody bats an eye at the sight of a civilian riding a bus, bike or motorcycle
to the shooting range, with a rifle slung across the shoulder.
In order to purchase
most weapons, the purchaser must obtain a weapon acquisition permit. Swiss
citizens and foreigners with a C permit over the age of 18 who are not
psychiatrically disqualified nor identified as posing security problems, and
who have a clean criminal record can request such a permit. Foreigners with the
following citizenship are explicitly excluded from the right to possess
weapons: Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Turkey, Sri Lanka,
Algeria and Albania. The following information must be provided to the cantonal
weapon bureau together with the weapon application form: valid official
identification or passport copy, residence address, criminal record copy not
older than 3 months.
To carry a loaded
firearm in public or outdoors (and for an individual who is a member of the
military carrying a firearm other than his Army-issue personal weapons
off-duty), a person must have a gun carrying permit, which in most cases is
issued only to private citizens working in occupations such as security. It is,
however, quite common to see a person serving military service to be en route
with his rifle, albeit unloaded. The issue of such exceptional permits are
extremely selective.
There are three
conditions in Switzerland for carrying a firearm. These conditions include the
following: fulfilling the conditions for a buying permit, stating plausibly the
need to carry firearms to protect oneself, other people, or real property from
a specified danger, passing an examination proving both weapon handling skills
and knowledge regarding lawful use of the weapon.
Finland
Finns have the fourth
most firearms in the world per capita totaling 1.62 million registered
privately owned firearms and 10,000–20,000 unregistered firearms. Gun related homicides
are rare, comprising 14% of the total number of homicides, which is
comparatively low. Guns and other weapons are tightly regulated. One must
separately apply for a gun license, which cannot be issued for “self-defense
reasons”. Even other weapons, such as pepper sprays, are regulated.
According to the Finnish
government, the country has 1.6 million registered weapons and 650,000 people
with firearm permits. That means about 12 percent of the population owns a
weapon of some kind. More than half the permits are for hunting, which is
usually done with rifles and shotguns. The rest of the permits are for target
practice, which can involve handguns.
When applying for a
license to purchase a firearm, the applicant must fill in a form with
information such as the type and mode of operation of firearm, and the intended
purpose of use (although one can use any firearm for any legal purpose
regardless of the original application, e.g. a range gun for hunting or vice
versa). According to the law, the firearm must be appropriate for the stated
purpose, but evaluating this is largely left to the discretion of the police.
Valid reasons for obtaining a firearms license include hunting, sports and
hobby, work, film and theater, museum or collection, memento, signaling, and
proxy ownership.
The application process
includes a check of criminal records, the police interviewing the applicant and
in some cases a computer-based personality test or a medical health
certificate. Any significant history with violence or other crime, substance
abuse or mental health issues will cause the application to be rejected.
Membership in a hunting or shooting club or other appropriate organization is
considered a positive, though membership cannot be legally required as the
Constitution of Finland guarantees freedom of association.
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