"The current Weapons Act was written in an entirely different time, and under very different circumstances," Minister of the Interior Igor Taro (Eesti 200) told ERR on Thursday. "In light of the current security situation, it's only natural that we review and analyze these issues."

He acknowledged that in reality, the broader process has been underway at the ministry for some time already.

"One crucial principle we are following is that every person in Estonia should know what their roles are in the event of a crisis or war, and should be able to fulfill them effectively," the minister explained.

"A second principle we have agreed on across sectors within the coalition is that there should be no unnecessary bureaucracy or double-checking on any matter," he added.

According to Taro, Estonia's Weapons Act is notorious for such bottlenecks, with several of its requirements seeming unreasonable due to their overlap.

"We certainly have a lot of touchpoints when it comes to this — if we can eliminate such irrationalities, that alone will significantly improve the situation," he said.

Asked to provide examples of current restrictions that he believes could be dropped, Taro highlighted rules regarding members of the volunteer Estonian Defense League (EDL) and assistant police officers.

"These may be volunteers who already have a service weapon and have met all the requirements to use their service weapon for their duties," he explained. "Despite that, if they wanted to bring a weapon into civilian use, they would have to start fulfilling all those requirements again, even though they've already passed the exams and undergone training, and are likely training."

This, he noted, is unreasonable.

"And our goal is certainly also to ensure that weapon handling skills improve, and that this right extends to loyal citizens of the Republic of Estonia," the minister emphasized. "This is certainly an important principle — I mean those loyal to the Estonian state. This cannot be extended to just anyone."

Security expert: Philosophy of firearm ownership needs to change

A meeting between interest groups and representatives of the state was held at the Ministry of the Interior on Wednesday regarding changes to the Weapons Act.

Businessman and security expert Jaanus Rahumägi, who attended the meeting, wrote on social media that the purpose of the process underway should not only be amendments to the Weapons Act, but also a change in the existing philosophy of civilian firearm use.

"The goal is to provide real substance to Estonia's comprehensive national defense concept," Rahumägi wrote. "The new Weapons Act cannot just be about making changes to technical regulations; it also needs to involve expanding citizens' and the state's opportunities in self- and national defense. This is a conceptual change, in which citizens'  opportunities to handle firearms for self-defense and national defense purposes, as well as to acquire and competently handle weapons, will be expanded — rather than deliberately obstructed, as has been the case until now."

He added that the goal of the authors of these proposals isn't to prepare citizens to independently participate in possible armed conflict, but primarily to prepare as many willing individuals as possible to handle firearms safely and competently.

According to Rahumägi's post, Wednesday's meeting at the ministry was attended by Taro and officials from the Interior Ministry and Defense Ministry, as well as representatives of the Estonian Hunters' Society (EJS), the Estonian Shooting Sport Federation (EL),  Estonian Firearm Owners' Association (ERL) and the Association of Estonian Security Companies (ETEL), along with MPs Mati Raidma (Reform) and Peeter Tali (Eesti 200), attorney Aku Sorainen and retired Gen. Riho Ühtegi.

Rahumägi also listed other areas where he sees a need for changes. He believes the Weapons Act should be amended to simplify citizens' ability to defend themselves, their families and their property from possible violent attacks, promote the construction of hundreds of shooting ranges and locations across the country for training purposes, as well as introduce firearm safety and handling lessons in schools, to prepare young people for future military service and the transition to life beyond that.

Taro nonetheless refrained from naming specific changes, emphasizing that while some changes could be implemented more quickly, others would take more time.

"All these proposals deserve consideration," the interior minister acknowledged. "I can't promise now that all of them will be implemented immediately, as is. A little analysis is needed too, to determine what can reasonably and quickly be done, which things are easier to implement from a legal standpoint, and what will take more time."

This sorting of proposals, he added, has yet to come.

"But what I can say for sure is that we're on the same side of the table as these people," Taro confirmed. "As a member of the EDL and a reserve officer myself, I see this issue the same way as all those other folks concerned about Estonia's internal security."

Number of guns, gun owners may increase

Asked whether the planned changes would lead to a wider prevalence of guns in society, the minister of the interior responded that this cannot be an end in itself, but it could happen.

"A firearm is a tool for achieving a certain goal," he said. "The goal, as I said, is still that every person in Estonia should know their role or roles. Someone may have several roles, but they should be able to fulfill them effectively. If they need to know how to handle a firearm, or for some reason possess one, to do so, then that should be possible without any unreasonable obstacles. This could be how it's formulated. If this leads to an increase in numbers to some extent, then that just proves it's necessary."

He added, however, that all of this must be guided by the objective.

"And when we compare the number of gun owners with our neighboring countries, like Finland or other countries in our vicinity, our [number] is indeed very small," he noted. "Both the number of gun owners proportionally and the number of shooting ranges and locations. There are evidently certain gaps here, and this correction must be made if we're working toward this goal."

Rahumägi's post also pointed to a shift in firearm philosophy in the direction of Finland's model.

"Considering there was a consensus in the discussion at the meeting, this confirms that the firearms philosophy adopted from Western Europe, where guns in the hands of the population are viewed as a threat and which Estonian police officials have voluntarily taken a step further, has long since outlived its usefulness," he highlighted. "A change is needed that would align with Finland's, i.e. our region's, comprehensive national defense philosophy, where citizens familiar with and owning firearms are seen as an opportunity."

The security expert also mentioned concerns that anonymous officials may start obstructing the Interior Ministry and public's initiative to amend the Weapons Act.

"But given our geopolitical situation, and to avoid the issue from fading into bureaucratic obscurity, we cannot let that happen," he emphasized. "A new Weapons Act implementing comprehensive national defense must be passed by this Riigikogu."

According to Taro, the timeframe for these changes will depend largely on the ongoing coalition talks, but noted that essentially, two parallel processes are already underway involving the Weapons Act. One involves reviewing the full text of the law to identify provisions in need of urgent change that can be made quickly and without the need to draw up a legislative intent. The other, meanwhile, would involve drafting an entirely new Weapons Act, which could take up to two years.

"Rewriting the entire law may take some time, maybe even a couple of years," the minister acknowledged. "But there are certain issues that need to be addressed as quickly as possible, and we can move forward with those more quickly."

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!