Costa Rica Reviews Gun Permits – Suspends Licenses to Foreign Nationals
Current Costa Rica law allows citizens and legal residents to qualify and obtain licenses to carry concealed firearms.
However, as of Wednesday (4 November 2009) Costa Rica President Oscar Arias declared a moratorium on the issuance of any new permits to foreign nationals.
The catalyst for this specific action was a shootout between Jamaican drug gangs and Costa Rica police where a Judicial Investigation Organization (Organismo de Investigación Judicial – OIJ) police officer was killed by an illegal AK-47 assault rifle in Escazú while investigating a previous days shooting between drug gangs that resulted in the death of college student.
The Costa Rica Public Security Ministry (Ministerio Seguridad Pública de Costa Rica) charged with the issuance of firearms permits will be reviewing all existing licenses, license holders and licensing procedures.
Being as no legal firearm owners are known to be involved in the crimes that led to this decision, it is widely believed that the current events allowed President Arias to take this opportunity in promoting his own agenda of weapon restrictions.
According to A.M. Costa Rica there are some 2,000 Costa Rica foreign national or legal resident firearm permits with only 4 being issued to Jamaicans. Of those permits, approximately 225 U.S. citizens are licensed to carry a gun in Costa Rica.
The majority of firearm permits issued to foreign nationals are for low paid and inadequately trained security guards who are considered a necessary ‘extension’ of the Costa Rica national police force (Fuerza Pública) by it’s own admission due to severe underfunding and inability to adequately secure many areas of the country.
Until now, it has been relatively easy to obtain a Costa Rica permit to carry a concealed weapon. Many foreign nationals come to Costa Rica from other countries where past criminal histories are not easily discovered, minimizing the true effectiveness of a cursory background check.
From a public safety perspective, productive changes that truly make the issuance and maintenance of firearm permits more stringent should be encouraged. A requirement of periodic shooting qualifications for all new and existing license holders with the registered guns they actually carry would be one such welcome addition to any new policy. After all, it is generally a good idea to be reasonably sure those that do legally carry a weapon will only hit their intended target in a justifiable shooting scenario. Admittedly this may be an abstract idea in a country where even police don’t participate in regular firearms training or qualifications, but it should at least be considered during the licensure process review.
While it is always good to review policies and processes, especially when it comes to important matters such as firearm licensing; the Costa Rica government needs to be careful not to infringe upon the rights of citizens and residents to adequately act in their own self-defense.
It’s the same timeless situation and argument that happens in the U.S. and in most other countries; if you ban firearms from legal, law abiding citizens -only the bad guys will have guns. Because gang members, drug runners and armed robbers don’t usually seek permission to carry or use illegal weapons … especially on unarmed residents in the absence of adequate police protection!
Stay tuned on this issue…
For more information on Costa Rica gun laws and licensing procedures, visit Costa Rica Blogger post and discussion: Costa Rica Firearm and Gun Ownership Overview
Filed Under: Casa Presidencial - Costa Rica Executive Branch • Firearms (Armas de Fuego) • Fuerza Pública - Costa Rica National Police • Government • Laws • Ministerio de Seguridad Publica - Security Ministry of Public Safety • News • OIJ - Costa Rica Investigations Police • Poder Judicial - Costa Rica Court System
About the Author: ¡Hola mi amorsh ... Bienvenidos "The Costa Rica Frog"!
I was born and raised in beautiful Costa Rica, Central America. Both me and my country find it's not easy being small and green, but we're trying hard every day.
¡Pura Vida!
