Gun prohibition orders could break abusers hold

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Violence awareness group White Ribbon is welcoming public consultation on whether the Government should us firearms prohibition orders to keep guns out of the hands of people with a history of family harm.

Manager Rob McCann says situations can escalate quickly if there is a gun involved.

Violence is not just physical, but also includes financial violence, sexual violence and emotional and psychological violence.

Being able to threaten someone by virtue of owning a gun is just another way that perpetrators can intimidate and threaten, without having to use physical violence.

He says many people think owning guns is a right, but that has be balanced with keeping society safe.

"We live in a country where we have the highest rate of reported violence against women in the developed world. When we look at that figure alone and when 41 percent of our frontline officers' time is dealing with domestic violence we know there are some real significant problems and I think we have to start looking at more and more solutions to be able to combat that," Mr McCann says.

A Firearms Prohibition Order might provide the peace of mind to help a victim leave a violent relationship, and it might even save a life.
 

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