Every year, thousands of new permits for the possession of firearms are issued throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). The most common reasons for submitting applications are hunting and self-defense.
In Canton Sarajevo (CS) alone, during 2022, 2.268 approvals for the purchase of firearms and 2.057 weapon certificates were issued.
And while the number of people who legally own guns can be recorded, the number of illegal guns circulating on the black market cannot be estimated. As the CS Ministry of Internal Affairs stated, during 2022 in CS, members of the Police Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs seized 17 rifles and 69 pistols as part of activities to confiscate illegally owned weapons.
The process of obtaining a permit and weapon certificate
The procedure for obtaining approval for the acquisition of firearms and the issuance of a weapon certificate, as well as the procedure for submitting a request for the issuance of weapons documents in the CS, is regulated by the provisions of the Law on the Acquisition, Possession, and Carrying of Weapons and Ammunition and the provisions of the Ordinance on the Appearance and Content of Weapons Document Forms, as well as requests for issuing documents on weapons and other documents.
In accordance with Article 9 of the same law, the request for approval of the purchase of weapons, together with evidence of the fulfillment of general and special conditions, is submitted to the police department – the organizational unit of the Police Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the CS, in whose territory the natural person as the applicant has his residence, i.e. where the headquarters of the legal entity or entrepreneur, as the applicant, is registered.
After receiving the decision approving the acquisition of a firearm, which is valid for six months from its issuance, a natural person, within eight days from the date of acquisition of the weapon, submits a written request for the registration of the weapon and the issuance of a weapon certificate to the competent Police Directorate.
The whole process costs about 500 BAM, after which you get a license to own a firearm.
Mental health check
In order to obtain an official permit, an examination by a psychiatrist is also necessary, but even this is not a guarantee that a person with a firearm does not pose a danger to others. Doctor of psychiatry Ljubica Todorovic explained what a systematic examination looks like for obtaining a permit to own a weapon.
Doctor Ljubica Todorovic deals with systematic examinations and clients often come to her to get a certificate of good mental health so that they can get a license to own a firearm.
”The most common reasons for asking for a permit are that they inherited a hunting rifle from their father and that they want to go “socialize” and not hunt. I then ask them why they need a gun permit. Because situations often happen when hunting, a dog that has an owner is killed. Later, they justify themselves and say that they thought it was a wolf, and these are usually huskies. Sometimes there are also cases when they kill another hunter thinking it was an animal that hid in the bushes and the like. I am not a supporter of that unless someone is asking for a permit to own a firearm for self-defense. If the person’s safety is threatened, if they have received death threats, and the like. Then the court’s decision goes for approval,” she explains.
The simple process of issuing permits for the possession of firearms, as well as the illegal possession of weapons, has caused a huge problem in the United States (U.S.), where school shootings occur very often.
“There are situations where children who have psychological problems caused by various factors, from lack of attention from their parents to envy, jealousy or abuse by their peers, take a gun, enter the school and kill dozens of students,” Todorovic said.
Unfortunately, even in BiH, we cannot be sure of the stable mental state of people who own weapons. Although in a sober state, a person can act quite healthy and stable, aggression and uncontrolled behavior often arise under the influence of intoxicants.
”A psychiatric examination cannot tell if a person is behaving aggressively under the influence of alcohol. They know how to act and lie. A big problem is that conversations with a psychiatrist do not last long and therefore certain signs cannot be recognized. We ask clients if they take any pills, drugs, or alcohol. Everyone says no, some lie. Unfortunately, here, people do not have ethical norms instilled in them,” she added.
The issue of the safety of citizens and the mental state of firearm owners becomes relevant after major tragedies, accidents, and murders. But solving this problem must be systematic, therefore it is important to take measures as soon as possible to tighten the procedure for obtaining permits for firearms, Klix.ba reports.
E.Dz.
