12:27 26.07.2017

Ukraine not ready for weapons legalization yet - justice minister

2 min read
Ukraine not ready for weapons legalization yet - justice minister

Ukrainian Justice Minister Pavlo Petrenko said he believes there is a need for broad public debate on the issue of possible legalization of weapons, adding that the country is not ready for that step yet.

"I have a clear position on this issue: nothing in this sphere should be adopted under influence of emotions and without broad public debate," Petrenko told reporters in Kyiv on Tuesday.

He drew a parallel with the adoption of the so-called 'Savchenko law,' as a result of which some 15,000 criminals walked free and over 14,000 of them committed crimes again.

"Therefore, the issue of weapons legalization should be a topic of broad public debate on whether Ukrainian society is ready to have people walking the streets with legal smoothbore pistols," Petrenko said.

There is a need to clearly discuss everything and stipulate all norms before making specific decisions, he said.

"Therefore, I am against populist statements saying that let's legalize all weapons tomorrow and enable Ukrainians to protect themselves," the minister said.

As to the possibility of former servicemen carrying weapons, this issue should also be a subject of debate, the minister said.

"I believe that we are probably not ready for massive legalization of weapons yet," Petrenko said.

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