Zimbabwe moves to tighten gun ownership requirements

The Zimbabwean government is set to tighten the Firearms Act, introducing stricter requirements for obtaining gun licenses, including mandatory psychological tests, training, age restrictions, and firearm profiling to ensure that owners can be traced. These measures are part of efforts to modernize the 1957 legislation and strengthen gun control in the country.

Cabinet has approved the principles for amending the Firearms Act, which will also include the creation of a national firearms database and registry. This will allow for better tracking of firearms and prevent the illegal possession and use of weapons.

Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Dr. Jenfan Muswere, confirmed after a Cabinet meeting that the amendment bill would include various provisions to tighten regulations.

"The amendments will also seek, among other things, to introduce psychological and training tests before one is issued with a firearm certificate and place an age restriction on the possession of firearms," Dr. Muswere said.

Additionally, the amendments will limit the number of firearms an individual can own and require the profiling of all firearms for easier identification and tracing. The penalties for firearm-related offences, such as failing to secure a weapon properly, will also be increased.

Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage Minister, Kazembe Kazembe, highlighted that the Firearms Act, which has been in place since 1957, is outdated and out of sync with current trends and technologies. He noted that there are gaps in the current law, including the absence of definitions for modern firearms, which the amendment seeks to address.

"Some of the terms in that Act are not consistent with what is obtaining at the moment, and some new firearms are not defined in the old Act," Kazembe explained.

Zimbabwe is a signatory to several international protocols and conventions on firearms, and the government is working to align its laws with these agreements. One of the most significant changes under consideration is raising the minimum age for gun ownership from 16 to 21 years.

"We believe a 16-year-old is not mature enough to be in possession of a gun, so we need to up that age to a certain acceptable age. We are thinking of 21 years," said Kazembe.

The length of a firearm license's validity will also be reviewed. Currently, a license is valid for three years without periodic reassessment. Kazembe emphasized the need to revisit the license periodically to ensure the holder remains mentally and psychologically fit to possess a firearm and that the original reason for issuing the license remains valid.

The government also aims to introduce different categories of licenses based on the intended use of firearms and implement new technologies to manage firearms and ammunition more effectively.

"We are doing all of this to try and make sure that only those who deserve to have firearms are given licenses," Kazembe said. "At the moment, everyone may have access to a license. And this may have resulted in so many guns that we have lying around. We need to make sure that only those who deserve to have firearms licenses have firearms licenses."

The proposed amendments are expected to significantly tighten gun ownership regulations, enhancing public safety and aligning the country's firearm laws with international standards.