Can gun legalization guarantee safety for citizens?

Ukrainians do not feel protected. Can gun legalization guarantee safety for citizens?

The issue of personal safety of citizens has been actively discussed in Ukrainian society for many years. Over the past three years, Ukrainians have begun to feel even less protected, and trust in law enforcement agencies, although somewhat improved with the introduction of patrol police, is generally still at a critical limit.

Military actions in the East, the uncontrolled circulation of weapons in a peaceful territory, a high level of crime and the possibility of undermining the territorial integrity of Ukraine have become the main factors, due to which there are increasingly calls to simplify the rules for the purchase of personal weapons and decriminalize their use for the purpose of self-defense.

Similar sentiments in society are confirmed by the data of the independent e-democracy platform OpinionFirst. During the last two months, the portal continued a survey in which about 4000 Internet users from all regions of Ukraine took part:

• 66% respondents spoke in favor of the legalization of personal weapons and their free sale;
• 34% do not support free access to guns and believe that this will only increase the crime rate.

As you can see, there are two diametrically opposed points of view regarding ensuring the right to personal protection. What solutions to this issue are offered by concerned citizens?

1. Adopt a law to legalize firearms and combat their illegal circulation: Since there is a significant risk of increased violence in society due to the uncontrolled importation of weapons from the ATO zone, it is worth strengthening checks on demobilized military personnel and at the same time passing a law that would legalize the acquisition, carrying and possession of firearms.

   2. Legalize the possession of weapons for the protection of private property without the right to carry and use in public places:

   This initiative proposes to limit the right to carry weapons, but to allow their use to protect the home and personal property.

Therefore, the issue of the security of Ukrainians is one of the most important priorities today. The problem has long needed more attention from the public and authorities, and society must find a compromise solution!

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About the OpinionFirst initiative 

OpinionFirst is an independent e-democracy platform founded by the international DemocracyFirst Foundation. In Ukraine, the initiative has been developing rapidly since 2016 thanks to the support of public activists, experts and opinion leaders from various spheres of public life. The main mechanism of the portal is online petitions, polls and discussions that reflect the public mood on current issues. The Ukrainian segment of OpinionFirst is one of the most active on the platform: in recent months, more than 100 votes of Internet users have been collected in support of important public initiatives.