Japan strict gun laws make shootings rare

• Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was shot and killed Friday.
• His murder has shocked the country, which has strict gun laws and a low gun crime rate.
• Japan only sells shotguns and air rifles; licenses for owning handguns take time, work, and patience to get.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s murder shocked the country. Japan has strict gun laws and a low gun crime rate.

Fumio Kishida, the prime minister of Japan, said Abe however shot and killed Friday in Nara. Japan is nearly gun-free.

The University of Sydney’s Sydney School of Public Health reported nine gun deaths in Japan in 2018. In 2018, 39,740 Americans were killed by guns.

Nancy Snow, the International Security Industrial Council’s Japan director, said the shooting would change Japan forever.

“It’s rare and culturally confusing,” she told. “Japanese can’t imagine our gun culture. I’m speechless. I’m speechless.”

The suspect in Friday’s shooting is a local man in his 40s who made his own gun, according to NHK. Japan only sells shotguns and air rifles. Banning handguns. They take time, work, and patience to get.

A person must pass a written test and a shooting range test with at least 95% accuracy to get a gun license.

They must also pass a background check that looks at their criminal record, debt, organized crime involvement, and family and friend relationships.

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Police must check guns annually, and gun owners must take a class and exam every three years to keep their licenses valid.

Under the changes, an organized crime group member with a gun faces up to 15 years in prison. Possessing more than one gun can get you 15 years in prison. Public gunfire carries a life sentence.