In the aftermath of the recovery of unlicenced pistol in the possession of UNP parliamentarian Ranjan Ramanayake and his subsequent arrest and the reports on number of illegal firearms circulating in the country, the police are to crack down on illegal gun owners.
Unlike some countries, Sri Lanka doesn’t have a free gun culture and strict laws are applicable to those who obtain guns with proper licenses.
However, serious concerns have been raised over the number of illegal firearms circulating in the market.
The Department of Police conducts frequent raids to apprehend individuals who possess firearms without valid licenses.
A grace period to handover illegal firearms held without valid permits or documents has been announced by the Defence Ministry from February 5 to 12.
The amnesty has been announced to collect all illegal firearms during the week long amnesty on the directives of Defence Secretary Maj.Gen. (Retd) Kamal Gunaratne,
The Defence Ministry has requested those who are possessing firearms to hand over them to the nearest police station during the amnesty period,
The Police have been instructed to take legal action against those who have failed to handover the unauthorised weapons to the Police during the amnesty.
This decision has been taken to ensure public safety and curb threats posed by such weapons. People are encouraged to use this opportunity and handover such illegal firearms without delay.
Authorities expect to take stern action against those found to be holding or using illegal firearms once the grace period is over.
Meanwhile, the Defence Ministry is requesting the public to provide information about those who keep illegal firearms in their possession after the amnesty.
According to statistics, the Police have seized 1,212 illicit firearms in 2018 in different parts of the country.
Among them were 32 pistols, one AK-47 assault rifle, seven repeater guns, 87 12-bore shotguns, 38 galkatas (locally-manufactured guns), 22 revolvers, 191 T-56 assault rifles, 738 trap guns, and 96 others.
(LI)