Australian gun ownership on the rise
-------------------------------
After rigorous gun legislation brought in after the Port Arthur massacre, gun ownership numbers are creeping back up to their former levels

NUMBER OF CIVILIAN FIREARMS IN CIRCULATION
3.5 million
3.0           Privately owned
2.5 
2.0 
1.5           Registered
1.0 
0.5          Number of licensed owners     2016
0    
              2000  2010

Current unregistered and illicit firearms: 260,000*
-----------------------------
Apr 1996: Port Arthur massacre
Lone gunman kills 35 people and injures 23 in shooting and stabbing spree in Tasmania. Government bans use of all semi-automatic rifles and shotguns – buy-back scheme sees 643,000 firearms handed in at cost of $350m
-----------------------------
Top five countries with highest gun ownership per 100 residents
United States 120.5
Yemen          52.8
Montenegro     39.1
Serbia         39.1
Canada         34.7
 
Countries with most mass shootings† (1966-2012)
United States  90
Philippines    18
Russia         15
Yemen          11
France         10

†Four or more people indiscriminately killed

-------------------------------
Sources: GunPolicy.org, VOA Picture: Getty Images *Estimate © GRAPHIC NEWS