Japan
See also:
Haitōrei Edict and
Firearm and Sword Possession Control Law
The weapons law of
Japan begins by stating "No one shall possess a firearm or firearms or a sword or swords", and very few exceptions are allowed.
[251] Citizens are permitted to possess firearms for hunting and sport shooting, but only after submitting to a lengthy licensing procedure.
[252] As part of the procedure, a shooting-range test must be passed with a "mark of at least 95%".
[253] A mental-health evaluation taking place at a hospital, and a thorough background check where one's family and friends are interviewed, are also part of the procedure.
[254]
A gun license expires after three years, after which license tests must be repeated.
[255] After ten years of shotgun ownership, a license-holder may apply to obtain a rifle.
[256]
Japan has been described as the country with "perhaps the first ever gun buyback initiative" in 1685, and is the first nation to have imposed gun laws in the world;
[254] as such, gun ownership is very rare: 0.6 guns per 100 people in 2007. When mass killings occur, they are often perpetrated by assailants wielding knives, not guns. In 2014, Japan saw 6 gun deaths.
[253]
Each prefecture in the country can operate a total of three gun shops. New cartridges can only be purchased after turning in expended cartridges.
[255] In turn, new magazines can be bought only by trading in old ones. If a gun owner dies, their relatives must surrender their firearms.
[255] Off-duty police are not allowed to carry weapons, and arrests are generally made without firearms;
[254] instead, police are expected to be proficient in judo.
[255]
