![]() America has the highest rate of murder and manslaughter by firearms in the developed world and a high rate of mass shootings, yet even moderate reform of gun laws has been blocked for 25 years. The rapid response to the Christchurch attack is in stark contrast to that of the United States. In addition to the sweeping reform of gun laws, a special commission is being set up to explore broader issues around accessibility of weapons and the role of social media. Less than a month later, New Zealand’s Parliament voted 119-1 to introduce a nationwide ban on semi-automatic weapons and assault rifles. The gunman livestreamed his actions on Facebook. Fifty-one people were killed and 50 others wounded when a lone gunman opened fire at two mosques in the city, in the country’s worst peacetime shooting. ‘One of New Zealand’s darkest days,’ was how the country’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern described the mass shooting in Christchurch on 15 March. ![]() ![]() The Pacific nation has introduced swift and sweeping reforms of gun laws following the mass shooting in Christchurch in March – a move that highlights the continuing lack of action to tackle gun violence in the United States.
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