BBC HomepageSkip to contentAccessibility HelpYour accountLiveNotificationsHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeMore menuMore menuSearch BBCHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeCBBCCBeebiesFoodClose menuBBC NewsMenuHomeIsrael-Gaza warCost of LivingWar in UkraineClimateUKWorldBusinessPoliticsCultureMoreTechScienceHealthFamily & EducationIn PicturesNewsbeatBBC VerifyDisabilityWorldAfricaAsiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastUS & CanadaCzech Republic MPs vote to tighten gun lawsPublished1 hour agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingImage source, ReutersImage caption, 14 people were shot dead at Charles University in DecemberBy Rob CameronBBC News, PragueMPs in the Czech Republic have approved an amendment tightening gun legislation, a month after the worst mass shooting in the country’s history. The amendment – which was proposed before the killings – must still pass through the senate and be signed by the president, and will not come into force until 2026.It’s far from revolutionary. So would it even have made a difference?When a 24-year-old graduate student with a history of depression shot dead 14 people at Charles University in December, he did so as a licenced gun user with eight legally-owned weapons.Police believe his victims – students and staff – were killed with a pistol, but the shooter was also carrying an AR-10 semi-automatic assault rifle.That gun became a symbol of the attack when he was captured on video with it, roaming the balustrade of the Arts Faculty and taking potshots at passers-by, injuring several.Moments later he threw the rifle down to the cobbled pavement and turned yet another weapon – a shotgun – on himself.How killer left a trail of victims across PraguePrague gunman confessed to shooting baby in woodsIt later transpired he had acquired seven of the weapons in quick succession in the spring of 2023. No-one questioned the purchases; he had no criminal record and he held a valid gun licence.No alarm bells were rung, nor could they be. There is no central control mechanism to warn the police that someone is amassing an arsenal.The gun licence had also been acquired relatively recently – and easily.The application has to be signed by a doctor, but they are unlikely to have known about the man’s reported history of psychiatric problems. These would have been treated by a psychiatrist with no legal obligation to inform the doctor of them.The legal amendment – proposed long before the shooting – could close some of these loopholes. It envisages a revamped online register of both guns and their owners. Doctors – including psychiatrists – should have access to it.Gun shops will be legally required to report purchases they deem suspicious. The system should also flag people acquiring numerous weapons.Police will also be able to seize weapons as a precaution, for example if their owners make threats on social media. Remarkably it is not currently in their power to do so.But there will still be no mandatory psychological tests to obtain a gun licence, as is common in other countries. Czech doctors can – but do not have to – request them before signing the form.There may be further amendments toughening up the legislation on its journey through parliament. But they are almost certain to leave untouched the fundamental right to carry a weapon in the first place – an odd obsession in one of the safest countries in Europe.In 2021, the Czech Constitution was amended to include the right to bear arms in self-defence after a massive petition campaign that was prompted by EU moves to limit the possession of weapons, including legal ones.There are now more than 300,000 licenced gun owners – and more than a million guns – in the Czech Republic, a country of 10.7 million people.The Czechs are a nation of deer and wild boar hunters – not to mention biathlon fans. But the vast majority of licences are granted for personal protection, not for hunting or competitive shooting.Why they need them for the streets of Prague and Brno is unclear.Related TopicsPragueCzech RepublicMass shootingsMore on this storyHow killer left a trail of victims across PraguePublished22 December 2023Prague gunman confessed to shooting baby in woodsPublished28 December 2023Top StoriesOil tanker on fire after Houthi missile attack, firm saysPublished50 minutes agoUN’s top court says Israel must prevent genocidePublished5 hours agoPost Office accused of secret documents cover-upPublished5 hours agoFeaturesIsrael reined in by ICJ ruling – but will it obey?’Crying with exhaustion’: How The X Factor was madeCheese, beef, cars: What UK-Canada trade rift meansWhy hermit crabs are ‘wearing’ our plastic rubbishHow many countries still have the death penalty?Weekly quiz: Whose Brits crown did Raye steal?Has the UK seen the last of this winter’s storms?AttributionWeatherThe ‘quiet rebranding’ of divisive Australia DayCancer survivor targeted by trolls for wearing wigElsewhere on the BBCIs a global megachurch manipulating its followers?Panorama investigates such allegations about the Universal Church of the Kingdom of GodAttributioniPlayerTracing the historical origins of British comedy tropesIan Hislop’s on the hunt for the earliest examples of enduring British jokesAttributionSounds60 years of Rolling Stones glory!Global icon Mick Jagger gives us an exclusive glimpse into his life in the bandAttributioniPlayerHow can you defeat your inner saboteurs?Comedy genius Troy Hawke’s award-winning show battles with a new enemy… psychotherapy!AttributionSoundsMost Read1Oil tanker on fire after Houthi missile attack, firm says2Trump ordered to pay $83m for defaming E Jean Carroll3Taylor Swift deepfakes spark calls for US legislation4Twins separated and sold at birth reunited by TikTok5Ex-Tory peer Michelle Mone’s assets frozen6Constance Marten’s baby warm, dry and fed, court told7Duchess’s diagnosis prompts skin cancer searches8King Charles ‘doing well’ after prostate treatment9Post Office accused of secret documents cover-up10’Crying with exhaustion’: How The X Factor was made

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• January 26, 2024
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