| NOTE:
Versions of this article also appeared in the: Ottawa Citizen,
Windsor Star, Edmonton Journal, Montreal Gazette
PUBLICATION: National
Post -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gun owners take fight against Ottawa to UN: Firearm markings -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- UNITED NATIONS - A United Nations gun control conference opening today will see Canadian sports-gun owners seek international backing against Ottawa's newest gun control regulations, which they say will unnecessarily make hunting and other gun sports in Canada increasingly unaffordable. The new measures require most imported guns to be marked from next April on a part of the firearm the gun owners say will add up to $200 to the sales cost. The owners believe rallying other countries to their position will make it easier for them to put pressure on Ottawa to cancel or revise the regulations, which specify the gun's receiver must identify Canada as the country of importation, and also show the year of arrival. They say they stand a chance of winning support from countries that have similar hunting traditions to Canada's because even the UN, in rules finalized last month, leaves open the cost-affecting choice of where to place country and year markings on the firearm, if they're placed at all. "We believe Canadian delegates at this week's conference will try to convince other countries that wording of the new UN agreement calls for the new Canadian marking standard," said Tony Bernado, political communications director of the Canadian Sporting Arms and Ammunition Association. "But if we can convince them that the marking system Canada is planning is not called for and is over the top, we will have a better chance of heading off its introduction next April." Tim Martin, director of peacebuilding and human security at the Department of Foreign Affairs, will address the conference this morning, but declined advance comment. Canadian gun users and traders have for years complained they are being squeezed by an increasing barrage of domestic gun controls, some enacted to comply with UN regulations Canada has helped develop to cut the number of illicit arms used in African, South American and other overseas conflicts. The 191 member states of the UN General Assembly will be asked to approve the new international controls at this fall's 60th anniversary summit. "Canada actively participated in the negotiation of this instrument and believes that it can make a positive contribution to the ability of law enforcement officials to trace illicit small arms, including those used in crimes and those traded in violation of arms embargoes," said Marie-Christine Lilkoff, a foreign affairs department spokeswoman. Mr. Bernado says police can already quickly trace the origins of guns that have entered Canada through current data, which include serial numbers, manufacturer stamps and registration certificates. "The thousands of weapons being used in civil wars in places like Africa have not come from gun owners across Canada," he said. "The new Canadian regulations are harassment of the gun-owning community." But leading gun-control advocates in Canada say international studies have shown that networks supplying the arms fuelling Third World conflicts also feed international crime groups operating in developed countries. "Canada is significantly affected by the illicit trade in guns because we live next door to a country with as many guns as people," said Wendy Cukier, who is attending the UN conference as president of the Canadian-based Coalition for Gun Control. "Historically, it has been hard to trace illicit weapons when found." Because the receiver is the main part of a gun, marking it is preferable to marking other components. Doing so is cheapest during the gun's manufacture, and the UN says "unique" marks such as a serial number should be placed on the receiver at that time. But importation marks would normally be applied after manufacture, when components such as barrels can be cheaply stamped because they are almost always made of steel, but not receivers, which come in different materials, including steel, aluminum, alloys and polymers. "The only practical method of [marking them] is by computerized laser engraving ..." says a position paper Mr. Bernado will distribute at the UN conference. "But these units are ... into the tens of thousands of dollars." Most new firearms in Canada are imported, so costs will "skyrocket, perhaps as much as $200 per gun," the paper adds. "Sales of new firearms in Canada will drastically drop and our importers, distributors and retailers (who are currently hanging on by their thumbs) will go out of business." The UN calls for importation markings only "to the extent possible" and makes no direct reference to location. Asked whether Canada believes other countries should adopt its receiver-marking policy for importation marks, Lilkoff e-mailed a quotation from the UN agreement stating marking choices are a "national prerogative." At the last UN gun control conference in 2003, Canada signalled it favours greater international efforts to restrict gun ownership. But UN officials stressed the world body's focus is on the developing world. "This is about eliminating weapons used to fuel civil wars," said Antonio Evora, a UN disarmament expert. "It is not about taking guns away from law-abiding hunters in places like Alberta." Worldwide, UN officials have helped destroy some 340,000 illicit weapons in the past two years under the organization's 2001 Program of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects. "Canada
has been one of the most active countries in promoting the program,"
added Mr. Evora. TONY BERNARDO --------------------------------------------------------------------- LIBERALS TRYING TO
EXPORT THEIR FIREARM FOLLIES AROUND THE WORLD LES LIBÉRAUX
TENTENT DE PROPAGER AU MONDE ENTIER LEUR FOLIE DU CONTRÔLE DES ARMES
À FEU |