AMACS COMMEMORATES THE 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ARMS ACT
The Seminar, which was organised by AMACS on 25th July with the kind assistance of the Chairman and Board of the Mediterranean Conference Centre in Valletta, was officially opened by AMACS President Stephen A. Petroni. He welcomed the three VIP guests, namely the Hon. Mr. Carmelo Abela, Speaker of the house of representatives, the Hon. Dr Glenn Bedingfield, Minister for Home Affairs and Security and Brigadier Clinton J. O’Neill, Commander, Armed Forces of Malta.
Following a presentation about the long and arduous path leading to the introduction of the new law and regulations, the floor was addressed by the first guest speaker, the Hon. Carmelo Abela, who spoke highly of AMACS based on his two interactions with the Association, firstly when he served as Shadow Minister for Youth & Sports between 2010 and 2013, then as Minister for Home Affairs and National Security from 2014 to 2017. In the latter instance, he was in regular contact with AMACS at the height of the EU Parliamentary debate on the 2015 Commission Proposal.
The next guest speaker was the Hon. Glenn Beddingfield, who expressed his solidarity with the two police officers who were injured in the previous day’s shooting incident. He condemned the behaviour of those who took the law into their hands, stating that he will be looking into the licensing procedure to ensure that it is administered seriously, as indeed AMACS has proven itself in handling it be over the years. For this purpose, his Ministry is open to recommendations from AMACS for a high level of vetting of firearm licence applicants.
Mr. Petroni concluded the session by thanking the two guest speakers and by wishing the two Police officers a speedy recovery. He also echoed Minister Beddingfield’s concerns regarding proper vetting of firearm licences, stating that the time has come to establish a uniform vetting procedure and common course syllabus across all clubs, as already proposed to the Police and the Ministry some years back.
Following a short coffee break, the participants proceeded to visit the exhibition “50 Years of Period Vehicles, Arms & Militaria” that was taking place in the beautiful hall of the MCC, where they had the opportunity to view a fine selection of WWI arms and militaria exhibited by AMACS members who are also members of Battlefront Malta.
The final part of the Seminar was dedicated to a Q&A session that resulted in the sharing of valuable information essential to keeping Maltese firearm laws sensible and effective.
The Arms Act and the Arms Licensing Regulations (Cap. 480 and S.L. 480.02) came into force on 25 August 2006, marking the culmination of almost seventeen years of negotiations initiated by AMACS with the Government, the Opposition, the Ministry responsible for Home Affairs and the Police. This process also included the establishment of an interim police policy in 1996, ten years earlier. Through the Association’s sustained efforts and constructive input, Malta adopted one of the most balanced and pragmatic firearms legislative frameworks within the European Union, a distinction it has retained despite the subsequent revisions to the EU Firearms Directive in 2008 and 2017.