On a Sunday afternoon in April 1996, a lone gunman armed with rapid-fire weapons killed 35 people in the historic site of Port Arthur.
That horrific event nearly three decades ago, which ushered in some of the toughest gun laws in the world, can seem like a different era for many Australians.
However, the Bondi Beach attack this past Sunday, which left 15 dead, has revived the ghosts of the Tasmanian tragedy.
A study released earlier this year revealed that there are now more than four million weapons owned by civilians across the country – a figure that is nearly twice the amount from two decades prior.
This means approximately one gun for every seven Australians.
While the state of Queensland has the largest arsenal, followed by NSW and the state of Victoria, it is Tasmania and the NT that have the most guns per person.
The data also challenges the popular notion that guns are mostly possessed by rural residents.
Weapons are common in metropolitan and suburban areas, with a significant portion located in urban hubs.
Critically, there are now firearms concentrated among fewer owners, with the registered individual possessing over four firearms.
Gun control laws in Australia are varied across the country, with a mixed implementation of rules in various regions.
Broadly speaking, to secure a gun licence, an individual must be an adult, deemed a "suitable candidate", pass a competency test, and provide a "legitimate need" for ownership.
The permitted justifications include recreational hunting or pest control, marksmanship, certain professional duties, and for collections.
However, significant shortcomings remain. For instance, individuals under 18 in some jurisdictions can have access to a firearm from as young as pre-teen age.
Following the Port Arthur massacre, a major rewrite of national gun laws was enacted, leading to a large-scale surrender scheme of over 650,000 firearms.
Rapid-fire weapons were prohibited, and vetting procedures alongside waiting periods for sales were introduced.
A key tenet of these reforms was the elimination of "personal protection" as a acceptable grounds for gun ownership.
In the hours following the Bondi shooting, political leaders were clear about the need to bolster gun laws.
A national gun buyback scheme was proposed, marking the most significant such effort since 1996.
Other planned reforms now under consideration include:
There are also calls for ongoing evaluations of existing licence holders, acknowledging that "situations evolve" over time.
These reform efforts have drawn criticism from some quarters.
Pro-gun advocates argue that limiting gun numbers would not have stopped an attack driven by radicalisation.
They suggest that resources would be better spent improving intelligence rather than changing laws for the great bulk of law-abiding citizens.
Furthermore, a long-promised reform from 1996 – a country-wide gun database – remains not yet operational, though it has now been listed as a key project.
For campaigners, the Bondi attack is a horrific reminder that gun laws must keep pace with new threats.
They argue that reform is needed to "keep up-to-date" and protect public safety.
While mass shootings remain relatively rare in Australia compared to some nations, the risk persists, and the legacy of firearms circulating illegally – through theft – continues to pose a danger.
As one advocate stated, "It is unfortunate that it needs such a tragedy to get people to wake up and pay heed."
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