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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Sunday, October 12, 2003

Over 3,000 loose firearms confiscated in Philippines

Nearly 3,100 loose firearms were seized or surrendered to authorities in the Philippines in the first half of this year, a local newspaper reported Sunday.


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Nearly 3,100 loose firearms were seized or surrendered to authorities in the Philippines in the first half of this year, a local newspaper reported Sunday.

Some 420 of them, the biggest share, came from Metro Manila, the Philippine Daily Inquirer reported, quoting Philippine National Police Deputy Director General Reynaldo Velasco as saying.

Of the total firearms confiscated in the first half of the year,around 540 were high-powered guns and the rest were low caliber ones, usually used in street crimes, Velasco said.

He said the police stepped up the crackdown on loose firearms following a spate of high-profile crimes in the capital, such as the armed robbery of a Citibank branch in the Makati financial district in August.

"The campaign against loose firearms have been bearing fruit, but we should continue to step up our drive against unlicensed firearms to curb criminality," the police official said.

In January, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo issued an order banning all civilians from carrying firearms in public places as part of her administration's efforts to improve peace and order. She also directed the police to suspend indefinitely the issuance of permits to carry guns in public places.

The police said it has so far issued about 800,000 gun licenses,but an estimated 328,000 firearms, mostly handguns, are held by civilians without police authorization. The number does not include firearms held by various rebel groups in the country with a population of 82 million.


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