Gun sales curtailed - World - Brazilian government approves gun control statute - Brief Article

National Catholic Reporter, Jan 30, 2004 by Dennis Coday

SAO PAULO, Brazil -- Brazil's Congress has approved the Statute of Disarmament, a law that prohibits civilians from carrying firearms and severely curtails private gun sales. The new statute must be ratified by a popular referendum to be held in October 2005.

According to the civil society group, Sou da Paz, someone is murdered in Brazil every 13 minutes, and 90 percent of homicides are committed with firearms. "This is equivalent to 45,000 deaths a year and 13,000 only in Sao Paulo," said Denise Mizne of Sou da Paz.

The law is likely to be resisted by the arms industry in Brazil, which earned an estimated $142 million in profits in 2002.

According to the law, a person convicted of carrying a firearm illegally would receive two to six years in prison, without the possibility of bail. Discharging a firearm in an establishment filled with people would be punished with two to four years of prison. The prison term for being convicted of international trafficking in military weapons would be increased from four to eight years in prison to 12 years.