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'''Gun ownership in [[Valduvia]]''' is extremely prolific, and the unique political and social attitudes surrounding civilian arms are considered to be a defining characteristic of Valduvian socialism.  Valduvia is among the most heavily armed nations in the world, with 105.3 guns per 100 people and a household ownership rate of 54%.  Valduvia is one of a small number of nations with a constitutionally recognized {{wp|Right to keep and bear arms|right to keep and bear arms}}, and the only nation whose constitution explicitly recognizes {{wp|Right to resist|armed resistance}} against the state as a legitimate use of civilian arms.  Political scientists widely consider Valduvia's relationship with guns to be highly unusual when compared to the gun cultures of other developed countries.
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==History==
 
[[File:Unia_Lubelska_1569_r..jpg|thumb|The 1582 [[Treaty of Kusava]] contains the earliest known mention of civilian gun ownership in Valduvian law.]]
 
The earliest known mention of civilian gun ownership in Valduvian law dates back to the [[Treaty of Kusava]] in 1582.  The treaty makes explicit mention to the right of peasants and nobles to "arm themselves in the service of their sovereign", a provision generally interpreted by historians and legal scholars as allowing for the establishment of {{wp|Militia|militias}} by the member states of the [[Valduvian Confederation]].  This right was not recognized by the Confederation's successor state, the [[Valduvian Empire]], although gun ownership remained common among civilians throughout the Empire's existence.  After Valduvia's loss in the [[War of the Triple Alliance]], civilian arms were heavily restricted in response to rising separatism.  In 1873, Emperor [[Kārlis II]] signed a decree prohibiting firearms ownership by individuals of certain ethnicities, including members of the [[Burlanders|Burish]], {{wp|Estonians|Martish}}, and {{wp|Frisians|Dellish}} communities.  Outrage over these new restrictions was a major factor behind the formation of the [[Diehlites]], a group of radical Burish farmers who are widely considered to be the ideological progenitors of the modern Valduvian socialist movement.  The [[Diehlite Uprising]] of 1919, widely considered to mark the start of the [[Valduvian Revolution]], was sparked by a failed attempt by the [[Imperial Valduvian Army]] to seize a stockpile of illegal weapons at a Diehlite commune in Eulenstadt.
 
In the immediate aftermath of the Valduvian Revolution, the councilist government was quite relaxed in its application of gun control legislation.  The [[1921 Constitution of Valduvia|1921 constitution]] enshrined "the right of all workers to acquire, maintain, and bear arms in a manner consistent with the laws of the [[Saeima]], except in times of crisis as directed by the [[Presidium of Valduvia|Presidium]]".  This initially liberal attitude towards civilian gun ownership began to change following Valduvia's entry into the [[Great War (Kylaris)|Great War]] in 1931.  Burlanders, who had long been the champions of gun rights in Valduvia as a result of their historical persecution, were increasingly marginalized during the war as a consequence of Premier [[Artūrs Ulmanis]]'s consolidation of power.  In early 1935, Ulmanis's government instituted a universal licensing and registration requirement for all civilian-owned firearms in Valduvia, ostensibly to regulate the millions of weapons that had fallen into civilian hands during the war.  In practice, this requirement worked disproportionately to disarm Burlanders.  Local police officials, an overwhelming majority of whom were ethnically Valduvian as a result of Ulmanis's purges, were given complete discretion over the issuance of licenses, and the applications of an estimated 90% of Burlanders were denied as a result.
 
Gun rights were further curtailed during the [[Valduvian-Weranian War]], during which Burlanders were accused of harboring reactionary and pro-Weranian sentiments.  In 1951, the Saeima restricted the issuance of licenses to members of the [[Valduvian Section of the Workers' International]] and suspended the licenses of non-members.  As Burlanders were largely excluded from party membership, many Burlanders who had legally acquired firearms licenses under the 1935 law had their privileges suspended and their weapons seized by state police officials.  The post-1951 disarmament of Burlanders was a contributing factor to the outbreak of the [[Burland conflict]], and the repeal of both the 1935 and 1951 gun control laws was a centerpiece of the [[Burish Liberation Front]]'s political objectives.  From the 1950s until the mid-1980s, the party membership requirement was increasingly used by the Valduvian government as a pretext to imprison officials who had fallen out of favor with the regime.  Political opponents of leaders at all levels of government often had their party membership suspended or revoked, leading to their arrest on federal weapons charges.  This tactic was used to great effect by Premier [[Andrejs Miezis]], who famously had dozens of his opponents in the Saeima and Presidium arrested on the night of [[Bloody July|23 July 1982]], several hours after formally suspending their party membership.  After the [[1983 Kirchhof attacks]], the Presidium declared a state of crisis in the Burland, suspending the constitutional right to keep and bear arms within the republic in advance of the [[Burish genocide]].
 
After the [[1985 Valduvian coup d'état]], gun restrictions were rolled back to their pre-1935 status.  The [[Constitution of Valduvia|1987 constitution]] enshrined a right to keep and bear arms that far exceeded the protections of the 1921 constitution, specifically prohibiting registry and licensing restrictions and recognizing gun rights as an integral element of a broader {{wp|Right to resist|right to resist}}.  Civilian gun ownership has grown dramatically since the [[Valduvian transition to democracy|transition to democracy]], rising from 7% in 1990 to 54% in 2022.  The rate of growth has slowed since the early 2010s, and experts project that the number of Valduvian households with at least one gun owner will plateau at around 60% by 2035.
 
==Constitutional rights==
 
The right to keep and bear arms is codified in Article 19 of the Valduvian Constitution:
<blockquote>
The right to acquire, maintain, and bear arms is a fundamental human right held by every person, and any infringement on this right may be resisted by the people by any means necessary.  The state shall not, under any circumstances:
# Demand that arms or ammunition be surrendered or registered, or;
# Impose any requirement for the people to obtain a license or permit for the transfer, possession, or carry of arms or ammunition.
The state may only regulate the exercise of the people's right to arms if the restriction in question:
# Regulates the time, place, or manner in which arms may be carried, or;
# Temporarily suspends the right to arms of any prohibited person who:
## Is currently categorized as mentally unfit by a court of law;
## Has been committed to a mental institution within the last 12 months;
## Is a fugitive from justice;
## Is subject to an order of restraint by a court of law, or;
## Has been found guilty of a felony offense, and has not yet completed or been released from their court-mandated sentence.
In all cases, legislation regarding arms and ammunition must:
# Meet a compelling and unavoidable need that cannot be accomplished through any other means;
# Be accomplished using the narrowest and least restrictive means possible, and;
# Not place an undue burden on the people's right to arms.
Any act of the state that does not strictly meet the requirements outlined in this article is to be regarded as unjust and illegitimate, and may be resisted by the people by any means necessary.  Access to arms is the ultimate means by which the workers may resist tyranny and oppression, and must be protected at all costs.
</blockquote>
 
==Regulations==
 
{| class="wikitable" id="purposes-and-reasons"
! Category
! Items
! Age to acquire
! Age to possess
! Background check?
! Waiting period
|-
| Category A
| Black powder firearms, manually operated firearms manufactured before 1900 with a caliber of 12.7mm or less, air guns, flare guns, stun guns, pepper spray, deactivated weapons, suppressors
| None
| None
| No
| None
|-
| Category B
| Manually operated and semi-automatic firearms manufactured in 1900 or later with a caliber of 12.7mm or less
| 18 (16 for "close relatives")
| 16
| Yes (Exception for "close relatives")
| None
|-
| Category C
| Fully automatic firearms, firearms with a caliber greater than 12.7mm, explosive devices
| 18
| 18
| Yes
| 30 days
|}
 
The [[Firearms Act of 1997]] is the primary source of gun control legislation in Valduvia, and classifies "projectile devices and related items" into three categories based on the degree of regulation.  While Category A items are not regulated by the federal government, Category B and C items are subject to legal restrictions.  Federal law prohibits the possession or acquisition of Category B and C items by any individual who meets the definition of a "prohibited person" as outlined in Article 19 of the Valduvian Constitution.
 
Category B and C acquisitions require a background check, which reviews an individual's criminal and mental health status to ensure compliance with federal law.  Transfers of Category B items between "close relatives", defined as a person's spouse, siblings, aunts, uncles, first cousins, and all direct ancestors and descendants, are exempt from the background check requirement.  However, federal law prohibits anyone from knowingly transferring a Category B item to a prohibited person, regardless of whether or not a formal background check is required.  Background checks may be conducted in person by a licensed firearms dealer or law enforcement official, or online through the Directorate of Justice's web portal.  For Category C firearms, an individual may not take ownership of the item until 30 days after their background check has been approved.
 
Both Category B and C items are also subject to age restrictions.  Individuals must be at least 18 to acquire and 16 to possess a Category B item, and must be 18 to either acquire or possess a Category C item.  Federal law grants an exception for individuals to acquire Category B items from close relatives at age 16.
 
==Political discourse==
 
[[File:Hommage à Ahmed Merabet.JPG|thumb|A memorial for the victims of the [[2011 Kuldiga shooting]], which was the deadliest {{wp|Mass shooting|mass shooting}} in Valduvian history at the time that it occurred.]]
 
Civilian gun ownership remains a contentious topic in Valduvian politics.  The largest gun rights organization in Valduvia is the [[League of Armed Workers]], which counts nearly half of all gun owners among its members.  The League, often referred to by its Valduvian abbreviation, BSL, is among the most powerful political groups in Valduvia, and was instrumental in crafting Article 19 of the 1987 constitution.  Gun control activists are represented primarily by the [[Kuldiga People's Movement for Gun Safety]], named after the [[2011 Kuldiga shooting|2011 mass shooting]] at a bar in [[Kuldiga]], [[Platavia]] that killed 23 people.  The Kuldiga shooting was the deadliest {{wp|Mass shooting|mass shooting}} in Valduvian history when it occurred, and is considered by many political analysts to have initiated the contemporary Valduvian gun reform movement.
 
In recent years, the Kuldiga Movement and other pro-gun control organizations have campaigned for the Saeima to abolish the "close relative" exception in the Firearms Act of 1997, which exempts individuals from submitting to a background check if they acquire a gun from a closely related family member.  Some gun control advocates have also pushed for handguns, which are currently regulated as Category B items under the Firearms Act, to be reclassified as Category C items and thus subjected to more stringent regulations.  Debates surrounding proposed gun reform legislation frequently involve significant disagreement over both the extent of the existing problem, and the efficacy, constitutionality, and potential negative consequences of proposed solutions.
 
Gun politics remain an ethnically charged issue in Valduvia due to the historic association of gun control with {{wp|Ethnic cleansing|ethnic cleansing}}.  In particular, many gun control activists in the modern political arena have been accused of {{wp|Racism|Burophobia}} due to the widespread use of gun registration and licensing regimes to disarm Burlanders prior to and during the Burish genocide.  Critics of this rhetoric contend that such accusations stifle necessary discussions regarding {{wp|Gun safety|gun safety}}, and undermine efforts to reduce {{wp|Gun violence|gun violence}}.  Several studies have found that Valduvian jurisdictions without a close relative exception for background checks have small but statistically significant changes, without disproportionately affecting ethnic minorities.  Opponents of such legislation argue that the sample size is too small to draw definitive conclusions about the effect on ethnic minorities, as the only jurisdictions that have abolished the close relative exception are in Valduvian-majority regions with little ethnic diversity.
 
The ethnic dimensions of Valduvian gun politics have largely polarized ongoing debates along ethnic lines.  Despite only making up 20.3% of the total Valduvian population, Burlanders constituted more than 40% of the BSL's membership rolls in 2015.  Conversely, 87% of the Kuldiga Movement's membership are ethnically Valduvian.  A 2019 poll shows that 80% of Burlanders oppose enacting more restrictive gun control legislation, compared to 15% in support and 5% uncertain.  Ethnic Valduvians are significantly more divided, with 53% in support, 41% opposed, and 6% uncertain.
 
==Culture==
 
[[File:Houston_Gun_Show_at_the_George_R._Brown_Convention_Center.jpg|thumb|A table at BSL Šovs 2008, the largest regularly held {{wp|Gun show|gun show}} in Valduvia.]]
 
Civilian gun ownership is deeply ingrained in Valduvian society, and is closely tied with the nation's interpretation of socialism.  The right to keep and bear arms is considered sacrosanct by many Valduvians, and polls suggest that a plurality of consider it to be the most important right protected by the Constitution.  As a consequence, gun-related hobbies are among the most popular recreational activities in the country.  Most Valduvian gun owners cite participation in {{wp|Shooting sports|shooting sports}} or {{wp|Hunting|hunting}} as their primary reason for owning a firearm, while a sizable minority primarily own weapons for defensive purposes.  A small but growing segment of the civilian gun community participates in "tactical" shooting, a broad category that encompasses {{wp|Historical reenactment|historical reenactments}}, combat-oriented training courses, private militia activities, and {{wp|Live action role-playing game|live action role-playing}}.  Civilians may be motivated to participate in tactical shooting for a variety of reasons, including emergency preparedness, an interest in military or historical firearms, and political or ideological beliefs.
 
{{wp|Gun show}}s are one of the most distinctive elements of Valduvian gun culture, and are uncommon elsewhere in the developed world.  Gun shows are often held at large stadiums and convention centers, and serve as venues for dealers to display and sell firearms in a communal setting.  The largest regularly held gun show, BSL Šovs, frequently draws more than ten-thousand attendees over a two day period every March.  The [[Directorate of Justice]] estimates that more than 500 gun shows are held throughout the country every year, and most of Valduvia's [[Constituent republics of Valduvia|constituent republics]] host at least one show on any given weekend.
 
==Statistics==
 
[[File:TBA.jpg|thumb|left|Percent of households owning at least one gun by constituent republic.]]
 
[[Category:Valduvia]]

Revision as of 01:54, 29 March 2023

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