Today, Wednesday, members of the Legal Committee of the Senate voted unanimously in favor of a proposal submitted by a number of members of the Senate, to amend the Penal Code and the Laws of Weapons and Ammunition, for the purpose of limiting the carrying of weapons and shooting on occasions.

This came during a meeting of the committee headed by Senate Speaker Faisal Al-Fayez, in the presence of the head of the legal committee in the Majlis Al-Ain Ahmed Tabishat, and a number of council members, after the committee discussed the compelling reasons presented by the proposals for the amendment.

Al-Fayez said that there is a clear violation of the rule of law with regard to the practices followed by firing shots, which calls for a review of deterrent penalties for these actions, which would spread terror, intimidate citizens and endanger their lives.

He added that these behaviors and other “practices that cannot be tolerated”, such as those in the roads, and others related to the scourge of drugs, indicate that there is indifference on the part of many to adhere to the laws, regulations, and instructions governing various aspects, and the assault on the rule of law.

Al-Fayez praised the great efforts made by the Ministry of Interior, the cadres of the Public Security Directorate and the security services in controlling violators and applying the law to everyone, pointing out that there is a need to diagnose the reality of these practices and find effective solutions to them, foremost of which is the intensification of penalties to reduce violations.

He stressed the importance of applying the law to everyone without exception with fairness and transparency, and for universities, schools, civil society organizations, parties and unions, in addition to youth centers and sports clubs, to play their role in raising awareness and education of the seriousness of these phenomena and their negative effects on society and the financial costs they entail on the state.

Al-Fayez pointed out that this proposal submitted by the members of the Council is a constitutional right that the Council performs towards his country, indicating that the proposal will pass through its constitutional channels.

In turn, Al-Ain Tabishat said that the proposal referred to the committee by the Speaker of the Senate is based on the provisions of Article 95 of the Constitution and Article 45 of the Council’s bylaws.

He explained that the proposal revolves around amending the provisions related to Article 330 bis of the Penal Code No. 16 of 1960, in addition to the provisions related to Article (4/b) and Article (11/d) of the Firearms and Ammunition Law No. 34 of 1952.

Tabishat pointed out that there are compelling reasons for the proposal’s sponsors, as the committee will review and finalize it, before the committee presents the two proposed bills to the council.

During its meeting, which also discussed a set of challenges facing Jordanian society, foremost of which is the scourge of drugs, bullets and penalties for traffic violations, the committee agreed to form 3 committees from the council’s members, with the aim of communicating with all concerned authorities to come up with specific proposals and recommendations that would be addressed. those negative phenomena.

From the point of view of its sponsors, the proposal revolves around reconsidering the legal texts contained in the Penal Code and the Firearms and Ammunition Laws, in order to intensify the penalties prescribed therein to achieve public and private deterrence for perpetrators of such acts, maintain security and community peace and strengthen the principle of the rule of law.

Paragraph 1 of Article 330 bis of the Penal Code states: “A penalty of 3 months’ imprisonment or a fine of one thousand dinars or both shall be imposed on anyone who unnecessarily fired a shot or a fire arrow or used an explosive without prior approval, and what was used shall be confiscated. From a weapon, even if it is licensed, and any fire arrow and explosive material.”

The penalty, according to paragraph 2 of the same article, is “imprisonment for a period of no less than one year if the act results in harming a person, temporary labor if the act results in any permanent disability or the abortion of a pregnant woman, and temporary labor for a period of no less than 10 years if the act results in The death of a human being”, while the penalty is doubled (1 and 2) in the event of multiple or repeated victims, in accordance with paragraph 3 of the same article.

The proposal also relates to Article (4/b) and Article (11/d) of the Firearms and Ammunition Law, where the first states that “it is prohibited to carry licensed firearms to the persons stipulated in Clause 6 of Paragraph (a) of this Article during official ceremonies and parties. Public meetings, conferences, meetings, processions of weddings, funerals, or any other meeting in which the number of people gathered is more than 10.”

While Article (11/d) of the same law states that “despite what is stated in any other legislation, a penalty of imprisonment for a period of 3 months, a fine of one thousand dinars, or both penalties shall be imposed on anyone who unnecessarily fired a shot or used an explosive without prior approval. The used weapon shall be confiscated, whether licensed or unlicensed.”

(Petra)