DA reiterates its rejection of the Firearms Control Amendment Bill

Issued by Ofentse Mokae MP – DA Member for the Select Committee on Security and Justice
31 Oct 2024 in News

The Democratic Alliance (DA) has once again strongly voiced its opposition and rejection of the Firearms Control Amendment Bill in Parliament. This was during the presentation by the Civilian Secretariat for the Police Service (CSPS) on its Annual Performance Plan and Budget Allocation to the Select Committee on Security and Justice earlier this week.

During the meeting, the CSPS reflected on the various pieces of legislation before it and conceded that they had received an overwhelming number of public comments rejecting the contents of the Bill.

The Bill was published in the Government Gazette for public comment in May 2021 and seeks to amend the Firearms Control Act, 2000 (Act No. 60 of 2000). Notable amendments proposed by the Bill include:

  • The imposition of limitations on the types of firearms and the number of licenses hunters and sports shooters may possess;
  • A reduction in the quantity of ammunition a licensed firearm holder may possess;
  • The deletion of provisions permitting private collectors to possess firearms and ammunition;
  • The introduction of certain obligations on the Private Security Regulatory Authority; and (most controversially)
  • The removal of “self-defense” as a valid reason to possess a firearm.

The DA has a proud record of opposing this Bill and we have taken numerous steps over the past year in this regard calling on the Minister to abandon this Bill, which will only hamper South Africans’ ability to protect themselves against dangerous criminals.

The DA further called for the Civilian Secretariat to appear before Parliament’s Portfolio Committee of Police to give a detailed presentation on the Firearms Control Amendment Bill to allow Parliament to fully interrogate the contents and rationale of this unreasonable Bill.

During the meeting, the DA categorically made it known that we oppose this Bill as one of the pieces of legislation that will be processed during this financial year. The Civilian Secretariat agreed that concessions must be made regarding the Bill in its current form.

We have called for a national firearms audit of all police stations across the country as more than 700 SAPS guns are lost or stolen every year and find their way to criminals. Instead of disarming law-abiding South Africans, SAPS must do more to keep criminals away from firearms.

We will await the Bill to be tabled before Parliament and will relentlessly continue to oppose the Bill and offer alternative solutions on firearms control in the country.