Canada's own Records indicate that
current Gun Control Tactics are not
effective Murder Management

An October 7 article in the Edmonton Sun  - Oct 7, 2005 (www.edmontonsun.com/News/Canada/2005/10/07/1252148-sun.html), makes no case for current strategies of gun control in Canada. The reasons are unsurprisingly simple: Criminals will not register their guns, while law abiding citizens do so to no avail, in the latest national effort to cut down on gun-related crimes, including murders.

The Canadian Juristat study reported that the murder rate in Canada increased by 12% in 2004, and that between 1997 and 2004, more than half of the murder guns recovered by police were unregistered. It appears that Canada's gun registry system, therefore, has failed. Neither the decades' old handgun registry nor the newer long gun registry has had a beneficial effect on the rates of murders committed with any type of weapon. Statistics that support this include that 65% of homicides committed with firearms involved handguns. Further, to no one's surprise, murders were not commonly committed by law-abiding citizens who just happened to have a gun handy. The report notes that "2/3 of the murderers and half of their adult victims - already had criminal histories." Obviously, these people must be singled out by government records and prevented from purchasing guns from licensed dealers.

Therefore, it is evident that the Canadian government's decision to mandate registry of all firearms has ineffectively targeted those who are not and have not been, criminals. This is a reminder of the American slogan; "If all guns are outlawed, than only outlaws will own guns".

When gun control was instituted in Australia, crimes against innocent citizens increased, because criminals knew they could pursue their criminal acts without risk of being shot by homeowners and shopkeepers.

In 2004 one third of all homicides in Canada were committed with knives, while guns killed only one quarter of all murder victims. Yet of course, knives, hammers and tire irons are not registered, for they are common tools used by everyone.

In 2004 there were 622 murders in Canada, a rise of 73 from the previous year. Of these, only 71 were the result of gang activity. Many guns used in homicides in Canada have been smuggled up from the states, suggesting that there is a genuine need for international cooperation in oversight of gun traffic that is illegally conducted.

Canada's handgun registry and long barreled gun registry are apparently ineffective in actually reducing firearm related homicides. Those intent on killing others find ways to do so, regardless of current gun registry attempts to cut down on murder rates.

IWMC urges all states to learn from this and other examples that broad based gun control by legislative mandates is ineffective. Rather, it is reasonable to demand that strict enforcement of laws against all violence be vigorously pursued, regardless of the implements used to maim and murder people. Those who commit such crimes must be dealt with appropriately and consistently, and should be on a national registry of those who must not be allowed to buy guns from dealers in the future. This appears to be a more constructive way of curing society's ills than the routine removal of guns, or the mandating of increased difficulties in gun ownership for citizens who have no criminal record. Such a policy would surely facilitate legal wildlife management through sport hunting or through the taking of abundant wildlife in commercial hunts, such as the harp seal fishery, where long guns are absolutely essential. Our best wishes to Canada and to all other modern nations whose leaders are striving to cut down on crimes of violence against their citizens.