Rule imposing a distance of 1km from gun clubs to schools will also be discussed soon, according to Salesio Nuhs
The government published on Tuesday (26) an ordinance signed by the Brazilian Army’s Logistics Command, which finalizes the regulation of the new arms decree. In the view of Salesio Nuhs, president of the National Association of the Arms and Ammunition Industry (ANIAM), which represents the sector, and Global CEO of Taurus, the “HSCs ordinance” (Hunters, Shooters and Collectors), brought positive points, but also items that need to be updated/adjusted.
With the publication of the ordinance, the segment will finally be able to sell weapons again. From now on, ANIAM will be working to update the items it considers to be wrong in the government’s new gun rules, such as the habitual use by caliber and the restriction on semi-automatic .22 LR rifles. Also on the agenda soon will be a review of the rule requiring shooting clubs to distance themselves from schools.
ANIAM fought intensely for the ordinance to come out as soon as possible, in order to defuse the sector, which has been at a virtual standstill since January and which, as a result, has seen thousands of layoffs.
“Almost 40,000 people in the sector have lost their jobs, out of a total of 70,000, which is equivalent to more than half of the professionals in this highly qualified sector. We worked hard to get the ordinance passed this year, as soon as possible, with the aim of getting the sector out of the woods. Many people are struggling financially,” says Salesio Nuhs.
Among the technical mistakes and possible spelling errors in the government’s new rules, which will be addressed in the future by ANIAM, is the issue of restricting the .22 LR semi-automatic rifle, a caliber commonly used in shooting sports around the world due to its low power.
“It’s a technical and legal absurdity for a .22 LR caliber to be considered restricted use just because of the weapon’s operating mechanism. We will defend this right, it is the entry caliber in sport shooting, one of the most popular in Brazil,” says the president of ANIAM and Global CEO of Taurus.
Another important issue for ANIAM is habituality (registration of CACs training at shooting clubs and/or participation in competitions) which, according to the new rules, will have to be done by registered caliber.
“It’s absurd to demand habituality with .22, .38, .380, since they are all permitted calibers. We believe that habitual use of a permitted or restricted caliber is the legal way to go. Perhaps there was a spelling mistake in the text, which should be habituality by type of caliber and not by caliber. The argument is that the shooter must carry all his weapons in order to be habitual, which goes against the very spirit of the law, which aims to reduce the number of weapons in circulation,” says Salesio Nuhs.
“This is not a common occurrence. A shooter chooses the event he is going to participate in and, according to the modality, opts for the most suitable caliber and goes to train/compete at the weekend, with a single gun or at most two,” he says.
With regard to the rule that requires shooting clubs to be 1 km away from schools, ANIAM is also going to seek a re-reading of the ordinance. Most clubs in urban areas are within this radius.
“We understand that the Federal Government cannot interfere in municipal zoning plans. That’s why we’re going to work on updating this rule. If we can’t reach an agreement politically, we’ll take legal action,” says Salesio Nuhs.
With regard to the new rules for acquiring firearms set out in the decree, Salesio believes that there can’t be too much red tape, but there must be control. The text establishes that for the acquisition of firearms it is mandatory to attach the same documents required to obtain a HSC registration, including: proof of occupation, criminal record certificates, address, as well as habitual use.
“The sector already understands these rules. So there’s no problem. The shooter has to fulfill his regularity. If he wants to move up a level, he’ll have 12 months to do so. That’s fine, as long as the issue of regularity by caliber is corrected. If this is corrected, the sector will have many level 3 shooters (which allows access to restricted caliber weapons, such as the 9mm, currently the most popular in the country),” says Salesio Nuhs.
*HSC – in portuguese: CAC (Caçadores, Atiradores e Colecionadores – Hunters, Shooters and Collectors) – *** Translated by DEFCONPress FYI Team ***