Civilians’ right to bullet possession increased from 200 to 1000 bullets annually, CHP lawmaker questions
ANKARA
A main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) lawmaker criticized the Interior Ministry’s decision to increase the right to bullet possession for civilians on March 17.
Mehmet Tüm brought the issue of the increase in the right to bullet possession for civilians from 200 to 1000 annually to the agenda of Turkish Parliament.
Tüm asked a parliamentary question to Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu on March 17.
“The Interior Ministry is attempting to take this danger even further, instead of controlling individual armament. There is no reason to increase the right to bullet possession from 200 bullets to 1000 bullets. Today in Turkey, weapons can be bought from the internet. With these weapons, murders are committed every day. In such an environment, the Interior Ministry’s decision to increase the right to bullet possession would cause more crime and more murders,” Tüm said during a speech in Turkish Parliament.
“Why don’t you start working on limiting individual armament? Why are you still not blocking the online sale of weapons in the country?” the lawmaker also asked the Interior Ministry.
“How have you come to the conclusion that the right to the number of bullets that can be owned is low? Is there any board or unit in your ministry working on the subject? What is the reason for the increase in the right to bullet possession by five times? Has any work been done on the hazards that 1000 bullets could create in terms of country security? Why is there no work on restricting the sale and use of firearms?” Tüm also asked.
On March 14, Interior Ministry issued a circular letter to allow civilians to possess from 200 to 1000 bullets annually.
Meanwhile, Turkish justice minister Abdülhamit Gül said he had no information about the recent circular letter on March 17 during an interview by Doğan TV Ankara Representative Hakan Çelik on private broadcaster CNN Türk.
A new legal regulation over individual gun ownership should be brought to the Turkish Parliament’s agenda, a parliament spokesperson said on Nov. 7, 2017, amid a growing concern in Turkey over easy access to guns.
Mustafa Baloğlu, the spokesperson of the parliament’s interior affairs commission, urged for criteria to be required in order to own guns and for background checks on gunowners to be done more carefully.
There are more than 150,000 people suffering from spinal cord injury in Turkey, 90 percent of who are wheelchair-bound or need assistance.
Some 67,960 people were wounded by gunfire between 2006 and 2015, according to data gathered from a forensic institute by Republican People’s Party (CHP) lawmaker Gamze Akkuş İlgezdi.
Some 6,796 people are wounded by guns each year on average and 18 people are injured on a daily basis.
