Switzerland Gun Policy May Keep Their Murder Rate Down-Truth!
Summary of eRumor:
This is a forwarded email alleging that Switzerland equips every adult male with a gun, trains them and mandates that they maintain marksmanship personal qualifications. Because of this the gun related crimes in Switzerland are almost nonexistent.
The Truth:
This is true according to a September 27, 2001 article by Britain’s BBC that said “the country has a population of six million, but there are estimated to be at least two million publicly-owned firearms, including about 600,000 automatic rifles and 500,000 pistols.”
The BBC said that over the centuries Switzerland developed a unique system of national defense where every adult man is required to take some form of military training. The training continues for most of their lives and can last a few days or weeks throughout the year. Men between the ages of 21 and 32 will serve as frontline troops. Each man is issued an M-57 assault rifle with 24 rounds of ammunition, “which they are required to keep at home.” After their service is completed they are discharged but continue to serve in a Swiss version of the U.S. National Guard. Their training continues but less frequently and they are issued bolt rifles.
As for the statistics of murders around the world, they are in accurate and may be out of date. TruthOrFiction.Com found that such data taken from the United Nations website have variations as to the year the information for each country was gathered. This would result in a less accurate report.
Sample report found posted on the website Maps of the World
Posted 03/20/14