The introduction of legislation by the Stephen Harper Conservative government to abolish the gun registry is getting an enthusiastic endorsement from Melville Fish and Game League (MFGL).
The legislation tabled recently by Public Safety Minister Vic Toews and which calls for not only the elimination of the registry but also the destruction of the records on rifle and shotgun registrations was a long time in coming, says MFGL president Ken Somogyi.
And during the 10-plus years the registry existed, it incurred the anger of local sportsmen and sportswomen - and their counterparts across the country - because the legislation targeted law abiding gun owners and gun users, and not those who used firearms for criminal purposes, Somogyi says.
"It looks like it's going to be a good thing and going through. (The government) can put some of the money (spent on creating and maintaining the registry) toward controlling the ones who shouldn't be having firearms instead of going after the ones not doing the crime."
And that was the biggest complaint of those who opposed the registry - up to $2 billion was spent on it to register the law-abiding firearms community while those who committed firearms-related offenses didn't register their guns, Somogyi points out.
While the federal government's legislation targets the registration of rifles and shotguns, the other provisions of Bill C-68 including the registration of prohibited and restricted weapons, and the requirement that individuals be licensed before they can buy firearms or ammunition, remains intact.
That, says Somogyi, is acceptable to the legitimate firearms-owning community.
"We still don't know about all the bad guys who are out there. All (the government) knows about is all the good guys who know how to handle guns. At least this way they can put some pressure on the criminals and maybe we will know who are the ones who shouldn't have guns."
Long-time gun owner and competitive shooter Neil Parker says after so many efforts to abolish the registry failed - including the Private Member's Bill introduced last year by Conservative MP Candice Hoeppner - it will finally die a muchneeded death.
"The registration of the long guns was just a big waste of money. It wasn't doing any good for anybody," and was implemented to placate
Quebec and Montreal in particular following the 1989 shootings that left 14 female college students dead, Parker explains.
Registry supporters who say police rely on the registry to know whether firearms are kept in certain homes aren't being totally honest because police are smarter than to jeopardize their safety by relying on a registry that's not dependable, Parker continues.
Parker is opposed to the federal government giving any of the registry database to any provinces - such as Quebec - which would use it to start their own registries.
"I don't believe the data should be turned over. We're scrapping it and I don't think the data should be turned over. It should be shredded."
As for the long campaign to abolish the registry is heading to a successful conclusion, Parker agrees that the tougher the battle, the sweeter the victory: "We finally won."
