Govt proposes ban on import of prohibited weapons

People with arms licenses advised to have it verified before December 2015

ISLAMABAD: In an effort to control the flow of arms, the government has proposed a complete ban on the import of prohibited weapons in the country.

The decision was taken by Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan in a meeting on Monday.

“It was proposed that a complete ban on import of prohibited weapons should be put in place,” an official statement read. According to the decision, only the Ministry of Defence Production and security agencies should be allowed to import such weapons.

The interior minister also proposed that individuals and entities, who are qualified for such weapons, can procure them only through Pakistan Ordnance Factory, Wah.

“Regulating the business of arms dealers is also critical,” Nisar said.

Further, the interior ministry declared that that all manual licences, which have not been verified, would be invalidted after December 31, 2015. The meeting also decided that “nobody under the age of 25 years should be issued arms license.”

The proposal came four month after the government had lifted a ban on the import of commercial prohibited arms, by changing the entire import arms policy with an aim of eliminating under-invoicing and improving documentation. The Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) government in its previous tenure had also imposed a ban on import of prohibited weapons in 1997.

The interior minister also underscored the need for putting in place a policy on the issuance of arms licenses in the provinces and the federal government.

While discussing eligibility criteria for issuance of arms licenses under the new policy, the minister stressed that the license should only be issued keeping in view the security requirements of the applicants. Among others, media houses and media persons should also be facilitated as they face security challenges in their professional pursuits, the Interior Minister added.

Addressing the meeting, the Interior minister observed that in the past various laws were grossly misused with certain privileges, which are only granted strictly on a case-to-case basis after thorough consideration and scrutiny, were granted in bulk without any checks and balances. As a result, private security guards, prohibited guns and bullet-proof vehicles had not only became a fashion and a status symbol, but had also created serious security implications.

In view of new challenges the National Database Registration Authority (NADRA) is regulating all the existing arms licences, the minister observed. “But a comprehensive mechanism should be put in place to regulate and monitor the flow of arms into the country,” he added.

The Interior Minister said that in the first instance all licenses issued from 1973 till June 2013 would be computerised through NADRA. The deadline for the validation is December 31, 2015. No further extension would be granted in this regards.