Brazil referendum rejects gun ban law

Cyrus · #1 10-24-2005, 05:10 AM

CNN report :

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RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AP) -- Brazilians soundly rejected a proposal to ban guns in a national referendum Sunday. The proposal would have prohibited the sale of firearms and ammunition except for police, the military, some security guards, gun collectors and sports shooters. It would complement a 2003 disarmament law that sharply restricts who can legally purchase firearms and carry guns in the street.
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That law, coupled with a government-sponsored gun buyback program, has reduced deaths from firearms by about 8 percent this year, the Health Ministry said.
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Brazil has 100 million fewer citizens than the United States, but a staggering 25 percent more gun deaths at nearly 40,000 a year.
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Earlier this year, support for the ban was running as high as 80 percent. But in the weeks before the referendum, both sides were granted free time to present their cases on prime-time TV. Analysts said the pro-gun lobby ... cannily cashed in on Brazilian skepticism of the police.
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"They ask the question: 'Do you feel protected and do you think the government is protecting you?' and the answer is a violent no," said political scientist David Fleischer of the University of Brasilia.

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BCPVP · #2 10-24-2005, 07:01 AM

Duplicate thread