Shinzo Abe death: A look at Japan's stringent gun laws

Tokyo, July 09: Since the assassination of former Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe has hit the news, the entire world seems to be in a shock "given the very strict gun laws in Japan. So what exactly is the gun law in the country that makes this assassination news so shocking? Here is a look at the "zero tolerance gun laws"

'No one shall possess a firearm or firearms or a sword or swords' is the wording of Japan's weapons law. The country has some of the world's most stringent regulations on private gun ownership. Other than the police and the military, no one is allowed to possess a handgun. Only shotguns and air rifles are available to civilians.

Even buying those weapons in Japan is a long and challenging process. The 13 steps required to get a gun include joining a registered club, and sitting through a day-long firearms and safety class before passing a written test with a score of at least 95%.

Applicants must also undergo a psychological assessment, followed by a police background check, and an investigation into their background, which includes quizzing family and friends as to why they want to have a gun.

The license is valid for three years. After obtaining a gun, the owner must retake the class and the exam every three years to renew their license. The weapon must be registered and inspected by the police once a year.

Japan last saw the shooting of a politician in 2007, when Iccho Itoh, the mayor of Nagasaki, was shot and killed by a yakuza member. After the assassination, the country tightened the restrictions even further and raised punishments for illegally possessing firearms.

Gun violence is extremely rare in Japan.

According to the National Police, there were just 10 incidents involving the discharge of a firearm in the whole of 2021, with Japan's notorious yakuza crime syndicates linked to all but two of those incidents. In total, four people were injured and one person died of a gunshot wound in 2021.

The number of shootings have been relatively consistent over the last five years, the NPA statistics show, with 70 incidents in that time, of which 49 were blamed on feuding yakuza groups. There were 14 gun deaths and 23 injuries in the same period.

Police seized 295 weapons in 2021, down from the average of around 350 a year for the previous five years.

Firearms are rare in Japan because the average citizen has no interest in owning a gun, crime rates are low so there is no need to own a weapon for self-defense and the laws are strict. The law that regulates weapon ownership was passed in 1958 and states very clearly: "No-one shall possess a firearm or firearms or a sword or swords." Additional legislation passed earlier this year has made it illegal to own a crossbow in Japan.