CONSERVATIVE PARTY GUN REGISTRY AD MISLEADING
“Gun owners who fail to keep their papers in order are still treated as criminals.”
In December, the Conservative Party launched an ad campaign targeting the pocketbooks of law abiding gun owners by extolling the virtues of the government’s Bill C-19, the legislation they introduced scrapping the long-gun registry. The ad proudly stated, “Now hunters and farmers won’t be treated as criminals anymore.”
“Yes they will,” exclaimed Sheldon Clare, President of the National Firearms Association. “The government’s own reports show that there are over 600,000 Made-in-Ottawa paper criminals whose only “crime” is not to keep ahead of the red tape imposed by the Liberal’s Bill C-68, the Firearms Act, he explained. “This number includes 337,993 expired firearms license holders and 288,527 individuals who have still not re-registered all of their restricted and/or prohibited firearms. There are millions more formerly law-abiding gun owners who forgot or refused to licence themselves when the Liberals rammed Bill C-68 through Parliament in 1995. The Liberal Firearms Act made them instant paper criminals. The Conservative Government’s Bill C-19 won’t correct this injustice.”
“To be perfectly clear, firearms owners like Bill C-19 because it is a good first step. However, we implore the Government that Bill C-19 not be their last step in reforming Canada’s costly, ineffective gun laws,” demanded Clare. “We ask every Conservative MP to work together to bring this matter to the floor of their next Caucus meeting to discuss the next steps that are needed to make Canada’s gun control laws truly cost-effective by targeting target the 325,000 known criminals who are already prohibited from owning firearms – not law-abiding gun owners.”
In his 2002 leadership campaign, Stephen Harper promised to recommit his party to: “…repeal Bill C-68 and replace it with a firearms control system that is cost effective and respects the rights of Canadians to own and use firearms responsibly.” The Conservative Party’s own firearms policy states: “A Conservative government will repeal Canada’s costly gun registry legislation and work with the provinces and territories on cost-effective gun control programs designed to keep guns out of the hands of criminals while respecting the rights of law-abiding Canadians to own and use firearms responsibly.”
“We ask the Conservative Government to examine firearms law with three objectives in mind. First, fully implement their party’s firearms and property rights policies. Second, consider all firearms law with a purely independent ‘evidence-based’ approach to justify all gun control policies and programs. Third, determine, based on this evidence whether or not gun control measures are working to improve public safety, reduce violent crime, and keep firearms out of the hands of criminals. If firearms laws and regulations don’t achieve these three simple objectives, repeal them. It’s time that Canada’s gun control laws are determined by their effectiveness – not public perception,” concluded the NFA President.
For more information contact:
Blair Hagen, Executive VP Communications, 604-753-8682 [email]Blair@nfa.ca[/email]
Sheldon Clare, President, 250-981-1841 [email]Sheldon_Clare@shaw.ca[/email]
Canada’s NFA toll-free number – 1-877-818-0393
NFA Website: www.nfa.ca
