Australia solemnly commemorates the 30th anniversary of the Port Arthur massacre in Tasmania today, a tragic event that stands as the country’s deadliest mass shooting in recent history.
On April 28, 1996, gunman Martin Bryant carried out an attack using a semi-automatic rifle, resulting in the deaths of 35 individuals and injuring 23 others.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese issued a heartfelt statement reflecting on the tragedy, expressing that “the terrible, indiscriminate cruelty of that day remains beyond understanding.” He noted that “amid the most terrible darkness, the best of humanity found a way to shine.”
“We remember those whose worlds were shattered by the loss of loved ones who brought light to their lives, leaving a void that their love desperately clings to,” he added.
Albanese conveyed his condolences to those who have endured decades of grief and to every survivor and family member who was haunted by inconsolable sorrow.
“We think of all who survived, carrying memories that will never fade,” he concluded.
The Prime Minister also praised Walter Mikac, whose wife and their two daughters were among the victims, for channelling his devastating loss into a call for gun reforms.
His campaigning helped persuade then prime minister John Howard to overhaul Australia’s firearms legislation.
“Australia is a better place because the government and the parliament of the day came together to answer Walter’s call,” said Albanese.
“This is what we hold on to â the abiding memory that somehow amid the most terrible darkness the best of humanity found a way to shine.”
On today’s anniversary, John Howard told the Nine Network’s Karl Stefanovic that he was stunned when he heard the first reports from Port Arthur.
“It was the largest death toll at the hands of a single person.”
He said the firearms reforms his government brought in could never guarantee that a repeat of another mass shooting would never happen.
“But what I can say is that all the evidence is that reduced the likelihood … and sadly, the terrible events of Bondi on the eve of Christmas is the starkest example, but we haven’t had much since.”
Howard also recalled his efforts to persuade the public and the recreational shooting community to support his government’s firearms legislation.
It included a gathering at Gippsland in Victoria in 1996 when, addressing a hostile crowd of gun owners, the then prime minister wore a bullet-proof vest under his suit.
“The police in Gippsland came to my AFP (Australian Federal Police) and said we have evidence someone is going to take a gun and shoot the prime minister,” said Howard.
“I reluctantly put it (the bullet-proof vest) on … I felt a fool … and I never felt unsafe.”
During 1996-1997, multiple states pass gun reform laws to a national standard. As part of gun buyback scheme 700,000 weapons were surrendered.
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