With a population of 127 million, Japan is one of few nations to almost regulate firearms completely. They provide a well-structured system to regulate any Japanese citizen wanting to purchase a firearm.
To buy a firearm is a long, but efficient process requiring the Japanese citizen to take a class, a written exam, a mental health and drug test, and have a criminal background check. This is approximately a four-month process and has resulted in astonishing low gun violence statistics that Canada and the U.S. should take note of.
Japan’s success in implementing gun regulations has seen it rarely exceed 10 gun-related deaths per year. Compared to Canada and the U.S. in 2015, Canada reported 178 firearm-related homicides while the U.S. reported 9,616 firearm-related homicides.
The rates of Japan provide the standard of how Canada and the U.S. should control firearms within their countries. This gun regulation system can give trust in their people within the criminal justice system, as it could decrease the rates of firearm-related homicides and violence.
Phil Timmer
Saanich