In response to a recent shooting at high school in Graz, weapons legislation will be tightened in Austria. This was decided at its Wednesday meeting the government. The minimum age to buy particularly dangerous weapons will increase from 21 to 25 years. The time limit between the purchase of the first weapon and its release from three days to four weeks will also be extended and the arms license will be limited, TASR reports based on DPA reports Der Standard.
The change will also occur in the psychological tests that the buyers must pass. It will be possible to exchange information between the Austrian armed forces and the relevant authorities, as the young man who shot at a school in Graz was evaluated as mentally unstable in a medical examination, yet he managed to obtain two weapons because the authorities did not know about it.
Tightening weapons control
“Anyone who is dangerous should no longer own weapons,” said Vice -Chancer Andreas Babler.
Meanwhile, the government has left the possibility of buying weapons of a certain category, such as shotguns, persons aged 18 years. Nothing changes even for hunters.
To avoid tragedies as it happened in Graz, the number of school psychologists will double over the next three years. However, achieving this goal remains questionable – there is currently one school psychologist in Austria to 5,600 children. “School psychology must no longer be an exception, but the rule,” said Chancellor Christian Stocker.
Supporting victims of shooting
The chairwoman of the Liberal Party of NEOS and Foreign Minister Beate Meinlová-Reisinger said the number of police officers in schools will increase by the end of this school year. A compensatory fund of EUR 20 million will be set up to support the survivors and schools in Graz, where the shooting occurred.
The Austrian government also agreed to monitor communication in Messenger if there is a specific threat. In the future, investigators from the State Protection Directorate and intelligence services (DSN) will be able to install spy software on suspects devices. This procedure against which the party Neos had reservations will be under the strict supervision of Parliament and will require the consent of the Federal Administrative Court.
Twenty -one -year -old Arthur A. shot nine pupils and a teacher at the Graz Graz Graz Graz Graz. He then committed suicide. The motive of his act is still not known, but the investigation revealed that he admired previous mass shootings in schools.
