If you are trying to assert that the gun situation is Switzerland supports the NRA position of guns for everyone, I believe you are mistaken. The statistics on guns in Switzerland are misleading, and it has a very high suicide rate because people who have ammunitions in their possession that are to be used only for national emergencies under penalty of law open the ammo boxes to shoot themselves.
gca.org.za
Switzerland: The relationship between gun accessibility and death
Unlike South Africa, with its high firearm ownership and homicide rate, Switzerland is often referred to as a country with high numbers of firearms in circulation, but a low firearm-related homicide rate. In fact, the number of firearms in Switzerland is comparable to other countries, and claims of a low firearm-homicide rate are moderated by a high firearm-suicide rate.
Since the origins of the Swiss Confederation in 1291, it has been the duty of every male Swiss citizen to be armed and to serve in the militia. After basic training, each soldier receives a military firearm and ammunition to keep at home, to facilitate rapid mobilisation of the armed forces. The ammunition is received in a sealed box, which may be opened only in a warlike emergency. The box and the seal on it are checked during every service, that is at least once every year.
Despite claims that Switzerland is one of the most armed countries in the world, only 27% of Swiss households have firearms, 60% of which are military weapons. This figure is comparable to Canada, Finland and Norway, and is a consequence of the high proportion of foreigners (18%) and the many female-headed and single person households in Switzerland. In short, despite having a militia, firearm ownership rates in Switzerland are analogous to other countries.
Although firearm numbers in Switzerland are similar to other countries, its gun death rate is high, a consequence of its elevated suicide rate.
According to Swiss criminologist, Martin Killias, of the Université de Lausanne, many suicide candidates in Switzerland turn to the government provided ammunition in the sealed box, as the prohibition to open it is an insufficient deterrent, confirming that the more accessible firearms are, the more they are used to kill, either in homicides or suicides.
Killias also refutes claims that the high number of firearms in Switzerland significantly reduces burglaries. First, and has been mentioned, firearm numbers in Switzerland are comparable to other countries, and so are not high, despite the presence of a militia. Secondly, it is prohibited to keep military guns loaded at home, and an unloaded weapon, with the ammunition in a sealed box is not much of a deterrent to burglars.
Following several mass murders with guns, concern about crime and outside pressure to toughen their gun control laws, Switzerland strengthened and standardised these in 1996, so reducing provincial (cantonal) control of firearms by strengthening federal jurisdiction. |
