A prominent voice in favor of stricter gun control is about to tell lawmakers that the federal government’s efforts to ban assault-style firearms have been mired in misinformation.
The PolySeSouvient group plans to appear before a House of Commons committee today to support the federal government’s plan to enshrine in law a definition of weapons deemed unsafe for civilian use.
PolySeSouvient includes students and graduates of the École Polytechnique de Montreal, where a gunman killed 14 women with a Ruger Mini-14 in 1989.
Federal Liberals banned the gun, along with 1,500 other models and variants of firearms, through an order in council in May 2020, saying they have no place in sport shooting or hunting.
Ottawa moved last November to expand the ban by including a perennial definition of such firearms in a gun control bill that also contains provisions on small arms, license revocations and smuggling operations.
But the Liberals withdrew amendments outlining the definition earlier this month, following criticism from Conservative MPs and firearms advocates who said it would ban hunting rifles and shotguns in common use.
Raquel Dancho, the conservative public safety critic, said in November that the proposed definition cast a very wide net: “the most significant hunting rifle ban in Canadian history.”
What people are reading
The public safety committee that is reviewing the bill now plans to hear from various groups and individuals on the filed amendments, with the goal of crafting new wording.
PolySeSouvient argues that the initial approach was fundamentally sound, but ended up being clouded by confusing language and erroneous or misleading claims.
“While we agree with critics who say the process surrounding their introduction was problematic, we believe that, in essence, they were generally sound and would not have banned most, if not all, fighter models put on display by opponents. to stricter gun control,” the group said. in a February 9 letter to Liberal MP Ron McKinnon, who chairs the committee.
Gun control group to tell MPs ‘disinformation’ muddled assault-style firearms measures. #CDNPoli #GunControl #Disinformation #AssaultStyleFirearms
PolySeSouvient, which made its letter public this week, says the echo of gun lobbyists’ claims has contributed to unfounded fear among hunters, even though their firearms were most likely not banned under the measures. proposals.
The group says a key challenge is “the lack of clarity around these amendments.”
“The legislative proposals were particularly difficult to understand, since the classification of weapons is itself a complex issue,” the PolySeSouvient letter says. “This has allowed a lot of misinformation to flourish.”
What opponents have failed to acknowledge is that only versions with a diameter of 20 millimeters or more, similar to a grenade launcher, or with a muzzle energy of 10,000 joules, which can pierce military equipment and structures, would be banned, the group says.
According to the government, such firearms are primarily designed to produce mass casualties or cause significant property damage over long distances, and their potential power exceeds safe or legitimate civilian use.
Some have expressed concern that if one model is mentioned in the latest long list of amendments, all versions would be banned.
“However, most, if not all, of the models named by those who oppose the amendment are not affected by the amendment,” the PolySeSouvient letter reads. “We fully support revising the language of the original proposals to make it simpler and less confusing.”
Among these firearms is the Ruger No. 1.
Murray Smith, a technical specialist with the RCMP Canadian Firearms Program, told the committee in early December that Ruger No. 1 rifles “are prohibited if, and only if, they are chambered in a caliber that produces of mouth greater than 10,000 joules”. .”
“Other Ruger No. 1 rifles, which are chambered for different calibers that do not produce that level of energy, will remain in the existing category, which is generally unrestricted,” he said.
The Canadian Firearms Program reviewed PolySeSouvient’s analysis of the amendments at the request of The Canadian Press, and did not dispute the substance of the group’s findings.
Introducing the bill last spring, the Liberals announced a plan to implement a freeze on the importation, purchase, sale or transfer of firearms to help reduce gun-related violence.
Federal regulations intended to limit the number of firearms in Canada are already in effect.
The bill contains measures that would strengthen the freezing of firearms. The legislation would also allow gun licenses to be withdrawn from people who commit domestic violence or engage in criminal harassment, such as stalking, and would increase the maximum sentences for gun smuggling and trafficking from 10 to 14 years.
However, the committee’s scrutiny of these elements of the bill has been largely derailed by the uproar over the definition of an assault-style firearm.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on February 14, 2023.