Ethiopia passes landmark gun legislation

The Ethiopian parliament has passed a law to restrict the purchase and ownership of weapons in an effort to curb the ethnic violence that has taken hold in some regions of the country.

The new law requires each of the regions to state at what age one can legally own a gun, and also restricts the number of guns an individual can own.

It also prevents private weapons manufacturers from importing guns into the country, and only allows certain government institutions to trade them.

Parliamentarian, Tesfaye Daba, said there was a need for this legislation because there were “a significant number of guns in our society since the previous government”.

Those in contravention of the new law could now face up to three years in prison, whilst those found to have engaged in the illegal trafficking of weapons face between 8 to 20 years.

Since Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed lifted the state of emergency and liberalised the media, people have felt emboldened to express their hatred towards rival ethnic groups.

This has led to a spike in the number of incidents between the over 80 different ethnic groups spread throughout the country.

It will be hoped this new legislation will help bring all sides together.

Photo credit: AFP