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Firearm amnesty to reduce illegal and unwanted firearms

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The firearm amnesty period officially kicks off on Sunday. This is after National Assembly passed a resolution more than a week ago, paving the way for another fire-arm amnesty period starting on the 1st of December until the end of May next year.

It will be the third firearm amnesty in the last 14 years.

GunFree South Africa says about 120-thousand firearms, of which a third were illegal, were recovered in the previous amnesty periods of 2005 and 2010.

The amnesty was proposed by Police Minister Bheki Cele in terms of the Firearms Control Act. The aim is to get rid of illegal and unwanted fire-arms to tackle serious and violent gun-related crimes.

The Democratic Alliance (DA), Freedom Front-Plus (FF+) and African National Congress (ANC) were divided over the amnesty period in the Assembly recently. However Gunfree South Africa called on all South Africans to support the amnesty period.

Cele said illegal firearms and those whose licences have expired have been given six months to renew or surrender them.

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