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New law to ban swords
The Herald Sun(Australia) ^ | 09mar04 | Peter Mickelburough

Posted on 03/12/2004 12:09:38 PM PST by neverdem

New law to ban swords Peter Mickelburough, state politics reporter 09mar04

SWORDS will be outlawed from July under new laws to curb the growing use of the weapons in street brawls.

Police Minister Andre Haermeyer said the ban would help police overcome a culture of young people arming themselves with swords. "For most people running around the street carrying swords there is absolutely no reason for them to be carrying those weapons," he said yesterday.

From July, anyone found possessing or selling a sword without a permit will face up to six months' jail and fines of up to $12,000.

Existing sword owners must surrender their weapons to police, sell them to a licensed dealer or apply to the Chief Commissioner for specific approval.

Collectors and people with legitimate cultural, religious or military reasons to own swords will be exempted from the ban, but must store them under lock and key and have a burglar alarm.

The sword ban follows a string of recent attacks and a regulatory impact statement undertaken by the State Government last year.

Last week, a 13-year-old boy was arrested and charged after allegedly charging police with a sword near Castlemaine, in central Victoria.

A 21-year-old man had his hand severed by a samurai sword in a confrontation between 40 men in the Fitzroy Gardens a fortnight ago -- the second brawl involving swords in 24 hours.

Huy Huynh, 19, was chased from the Salt nightclub and hacked to death nearby in July 2002 by a mob using samurai swords and machetes.

The new laws will make it illegal to sell swords to anyone who does not have a permit.

Sword sellers will have to keep a register of buyers' details and make it available for police to inspect.

Mr Haermeyer said groups such as highland dancers, historic re-enactment groups, bonafide collectors and people with family heirlooms could apply for an exemption from the licensing services branch of Victoria Police.

"Legitimate sword owners understand the importance of ensuring that their swords do not fall into the wrong hands," he said.

"The vast majority of the community would say, 'Look, there's no place for people just being able to go out there and buy these things and carry them around the street'."

Mr Haermeyer said the exact definition of a sword under the new regulations was still being considered.

He said machetes would remain a controlled weapon, requiring a person to have a legitimate reason for carrying them.

The Government is also looking at bans on some other weapons, such as crossbows, and greater restriction on the sale of prohibited and regulated weapons at weekend markets.

Mr Haermeyer warned that police would be actively hunting for knives and swords after being given new powers and 480 metal detectors late last year, allowing them to search people they reasonably suspected were carrying weapons.

privacy © Herald and Weekly Times © AFP


TOPICS: Australia/New Zealand; Culture/Society; Extended News; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: bang; banglist; machete; sword
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Pretty soon, it will be anything carried by hand.
1 posted on 03/12/2004 12:09:39 PM PST by neverdem
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To: fourdeuce82d; Travis McGee; Joe Brower
Swoosh
2 posted on 03/12/2004 12:11:01 PM PST by neverdem (Xin loi min oi)
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To: Bacon Man; humblegunner; Hap
This does NOT rule.
3 posted on 03/12/2004 12:12:23 PM PST by Xenalyte (I may not agree with your bumper sticker, but I shall defend to the death your right to stick it)
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To: neverdem
Legitimate sword owners understand the importance of ensuring that their swords do not fall into the wrong hands," he said.

Read that sentence. I swear to God it sounds like something out of a Monty Python episode...

4 posted on 03/12/2004 12:12:29 PM PST by jscd3
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To: neverdem
Scotland banned swords, too, with a turn-in amnesty period.

5 posted on 03/12/2004 12:12:59 PM PST by DBrow
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To: neverdem
Forsooth!
6 posted on 03/12/2004 12:13:15 PM PST by Snickersnee (Where are we going? And what's with this handbasket???)
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To: neverdem
Kitchen knives are next, and everyone is gonna have to buy their food pre-cut by licensed butchers/chefs.

So9

7 posted on 03/12/2004 12:15:56 PM PST by Servant of the 9 (Goldwater Republican)
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To: neverdem
neverdem wrote:

Pretty soon, it will be anything carried by hand.




Except the bloody cell phones.
8 posted on 03/12/2004 12:16:10 PM PST by tiamat ("Just a Bronze-Age Gal, Trapped in a Techno World!")
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To: neverdem
It won't end there, making a fist will no doubt become illegal as well.
9 posted on 03/12/2004 12:17:00 PM PST by SENTINEL (USMC GWI (MY GOD IS GOD, ROCKCHUCKER !!))
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Comment #10 Removed by Moderator

To: neverdem
I'd say the Aussies have lost their collective minds.
11 posted on 03/12/2004 12:17:37 PM PST by Eric in the Ozarks
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To: neverdem
De-evolution in action.
Next they'll be wielding mastodon bones and tree branches.

Arthur C. Clarke wept.
12 posted on 03/12/2004 12:17:58 PM PST by Salamander
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To: jscd3
like something out of a Monty Python episode...

All right then, come at me with that banana!

13 posted on 03/12/2004 12:18:23 PM PST by Martin Tell (I will not be terrified or Kerrified.)
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To: neverdem
Sounds like something out of feudal China or Japan. Unbelievable.
14 posted on 03/12/2004 12:19:11 PM PST by RogueIsland
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Comment #15 Removed by Moderator

To: jscd3
Surely the swordsmith lobby can put a stop to this.
16 posted on 03/12/2004 12:21:22 PM PST by Petronski (I'm not always cranky.)
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To: Salve Regina
Next it will be the outlawing of sporks.
17 posted on 03/12/2004 12:21:55 PM PST by kaktuskid
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To: neverdem
What next? Will you have to be a licensed carpenter to own a hammer? A licensed baseball player to own a baseball bat???
18 posted on 03/12/2004 12:22:08 PM PST by adam_az (Call your state Republican party office and VOLUNTEER FOR A CAMPAIGN!!!)
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Comment #19 Removed by Moderator

To: Xenalyte
This does NOT rule.

Indeed, this SUCKS. What next? Ban teeth? Those can be deadly weapons!

Lord...

20 posted on 03/12/2004 12:23:15 PM PST by StoneColdGOP (McClintock - In Your Heart, You Know He's Right)
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