Sunday, October 23, 2005

Shot down

So much for Brazil's big gun control idea, as it appears that the referendum to bar gun sales is headed for defeat:
Brazilians appeared to soundly reject a ban on gun sales in a national referendum Sunday that stirred a fierce debate in a country with one of the world's highest gun death rates.

With results from over 71 per cent of the polling places tallied, 64.78 per cent of Brazilians voted against the ban, while 35.22 per cent voted in favour of it, according to the Supreme Electoral Court, which oversees elections.

Brazil has 100 million fewer citizens than the United States, but 25 per cent more gun deaths at nearly 40,000 a year. While both sides in the debate agree that violence is excessive, opponents of the gun ban have gained support in recent weeks by playing on Brazilians' fears that the police can't protect them.

While I'm disappointed not to see the initiative pass, particularly when its failure seems closely tied to an NRA-style vigilante message, it's fair enough that Brazilians decided that the measure wasn't for them, particularly when other controls are already putting a dent in the death toll.

The tragedy for the rest of the world is that we won't get to see how such a policy could work in practice...which could be essential information in allowing other states to consider similar measures. It appears someone else will have to take the lead. And there's no indication yet as to who will fill that role.

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