Special measures: Govt to impose import ban on big guns

Interior ministry recommends measures to streamline issuance of gun permits


Our Correspondent May 05, 2015
PHOTO: AFP

ISLAMABAD: In an effort to control the proliferation of weapons, the government has decided to ban the import of prohibited-bore guns into the country.

This decision was taken by Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan during an important meeting in Islamabad on Monday.

A blanket ban on the import of prohibited-bore weapons should be put in place with only the defence production ministry and security agencies allowed to trade in such weapons, read an official statement issued after the meeting.

The term prohibited-bore implies for weapons used by armed forces and law enforcing agencies only and special permission is required for civilians to purchse such gun.

“Regulating the business of arms dealers is also critical,” the statement said, quoting the interior minister, who also suggested that the individuals or entities, who qualified for possessing these weapons, should acquire them only through the Pakistan Ordnance Factories in Wah.

The proposal comes four months after the government lifted the ban on the import of commercially prohibited guns by changing the entire import policy with an aim to eliminate under-invoicing and improving documentation. Interestingly, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government in its previous tenure had also imposed a ban on the import of prohibited weapons in 1997.

In the past, Chaudhry Nisar said, laws had been grossly misused to grant privileges and permissions only granted by the state on a case-to-case basis. As a result, private guards, prohibited guns and bulletproof vehicles not only became a fashion and a status symbol but also created serious security implications, he observed.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 5th, 2015.

 

COMMENTS (1)

Jehanzeb Mahar | 8 years ago | Reply Very good. Only terrorists, rapists and dacoits should be allowed to keep these weapons.
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