Gun permits easier to get in Finland than driving licences
Only Finland opposes EU plans to raise age limits for shooting
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Pekka-Eric Auvinen initially applied for a permit for a 9-millimetre semi-automatic pistol.
Police Chief Matti Tohkanen of the Central Uusimaa precinct turned down the application because of the weapon's heavy firepower. The fact that the application was Auvinen's first also had something to do with the refusal.
Tohkanen told Auvinen that for target shooting he could get a 22-calibre pistol at most. He granted such a licence to Auvinen on October the 18th because Auvinen was a member of the Helsinki Shooting Club, and because he had a spotless record.
Is it exceptional that a semi-automatic weapon is the first for which a gun permit is issued?
"It is unusual, but even a 15-year-old can get one. In this case, a permit was not granted for a 9-mm. gun because the reason given for getting a weapon was target shooting", Tohkanen says.
It is easier to get a gun permit in Finland than a driving licence, for which driving lessons and a doctor's certificate are needed.
A directive on firearms is in the making in the European Union, which would raise the age limits for getting a firearm permit. Finland is the only member state opposed to the change.
The European Parliament feels that those 18 and over would be allowed to use guns only for hunting or sports shooting, and that adult supervision would be required in such cases. Finland does not want to accept these restrictions.
EU Presidency-holder Portugal has proposed a compromise in which the controls would be eased from the proposal by the EU Parliament.
Finland is not planning any changes, says Minister of the Interior Anne Holmlund. She noted in Brussels on Thursday that the shooter in Jokela was over 18 and had a legal weapon. "The directive question would not have helped in this situation."
Holmlund, and Astrid Thors, the Minister of European Affairs, received messages of condolence in Brussels. The Finnish flags in front of the EU building were at half mast.
The two said that EU ministers of other countries had expressed amazement at how events such as the Jokela killings can happen. However, nobody had made any reference to Finnish gun legislation.
At the Helsinki Shooting Club, head of communications Mari Kiuru says that Auvinen had not been at the club many times for target practice.
"If he has been here, it was for an introductory visit, without doing so it is not possible to fill in a membership form."
Anyone can become a member of HSC. Membership entitles a person to discounts at the club's firing range. It is not a recommendation for a gun permit: "At least police in the nearby area know that it is only a proof of membership."
Police Chief Tohkanen says that without the Helsinki Shooting Club membership card, he would have granted Auvinen a temporary 18-month permit and told him that before such a permit expires, an applicant should reliably show the continuity and extent of his or her shooting hobby.
Helsingin Sanomat
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| 9.11.2007 - TODAY |
 Gun permits easier to get in Finland than driving licences |
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