Giffords plea to US on gun violence
2013-01-30 18:03
Washington - Former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords,
grievously wounded in a 2011 mass shooting, made an emotional plea on Wednesday
for Congress to take action to curb gun violence in the aftermath of last
month's Connecticut school massacre, urging lawmakers to "be bold, be
courageous”.
Wearing a red outfit and speaking haltingly, Giffords
appeared as the first person to testify before the first congressional hearing
on gun violence since the 14 December incident in which a gunman shot dead 20
children and six adults at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut.
"This is an important conversation for our children,
for our communities, for Democrats and Republicans," Giffords, who
survived a head wound in an assassination attempt last year in Tucson, Arizona,
said, speaking haltingly.
Six people were killed and 13 wounded in the incident.
"Speaking is difficult. But I need to say something
important," she told the senators. "Violence is a big problem. Too
many children are dying - too many children. We must do something. It will be
hard. But the time is now."
Accompanied by her husband, former astronaut Mark Kelly,
she concluded: "You must act. Be bold, be courageous. Americans are
counting on you. Thank you."
She did not take questions from the committee.
Responding to outrage across the country following the
Connecticut massacre, President Barack Obama and other Democrats are seeking
the largest gun-control package in decades.
Kelly also testified.
The couple recently founded Americans for Responsible
Solutions, a group intended to combat gun violence.
Others set to testify include National Rifle Association
(NRA) executive vice president and CEO Wayne LaPierre, whose group is an
influential opponent of gun restrictions.
Obama's proposals to curb gun violence include
reinstating the US ban on military-style "assault" weapons, limiting the
capacity of ammunition magazines, and more extensive background checks of
prospective gun buyers, largely to verify whether they have a history of crime
or mental illness.
Republicans and some pro-gun Democrats envision a more
modest package.
It is unclear whether there is sufficient support in the
Democratic-led Senate and the Republican-led House of Representatives to pass
any gun restrictions beyond improved background checks.
Gun control
The calls for gun control - so prominent during the
emotional days following the shootings in Connecticut - will face political
reality in Congress.
The committee chairperson, Senator Patrick Leahey, made
clear whatever measures would be considered to rein in gun violence, there
would be no move to erode the fundamental right of Americans to own a gun,
which is protected under the Second Amendment of the US Constitution.
"Americans have the right to have guns in their home
to protect their family," he said.
Americans must come together on the issue, Leahy, a
Vermont Democrat, added.
Most Republicans and some Democrats in Congress favour
gun rights and represent constituents who do as well. The NRA has called any
attempt to restrict weapon sales an assault on Americans' constitutional right
to bear arms.
In recent days, some Republican lawmakers have joined
Democrats in emphasising better background checks of gun buyers, rather than
Obama's plan to ban the sale of rapid-firing assault weapons like the one used
in the Connecticut shootings.
The NRA's plan for securing schools has revolved around
putting armed guards on campuses.
In a statement released on Tuesday that he plans to give
before the Senate panel on Wednesday, LaPierre sounded a familiar refrain of
gun-rights supporters, calling on better enforcement of existing gun laws
rather than new laws.
"We need to look at the full range of mental health
issues, from early detection and treatment, to civil commitment laws, to
privacy laws that needlessly prevent mental health records from being included
in the National Instant Criminal Background Check System," he said.
Federally licensed firearms dealers are required to run
background checks for criminal records on gun buyers.
But the government estimates that 40% of purchasers avoid
screening by getting their guns from private sellers, including those at gun
shows.
The White House's plan would require screening for all
prospective buyers.
The background check provision is generally regarded as
the gun-control measure most likely to receive bipartisan support, but even it
could face some difficulty.
Although Obama's Democrats hold a 55-45 edge in seats in
the US Senate, the president's call to revive the assault weapons ban that
expired in 2004 faces an uphill fight.
