PROGUN
PROGUN (Peaceful Responsible Owners of Guns) is a Philippine-based firearms advocacy group. It was founded in 1987 [1] to make it easier for Filipino citizens to own and carry firearms. Although it started off as a non-political group, it became heavily involved in political lobbing and advocacy after a long period of inactivity during the early 2000s.
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[edit] Political lobbying
From around 2009, PROGUN involved itself with political campaigns to protect firearms rights for Filipinos. Most notably, these included:
- opposition to [2] to the House Bill No. 6776 [3] firearms control bill (filed on October 19, 2009);
- opposition to the Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Versoza's proposal in 2010 to put in place an extended gun ban throughout the country.[4]
[edit] 2010 Election Gun Ban Statistics Project
As part of its efforts to block the extended gun ban, PROGUN volunteers started a Gun Ban Statistics Project to record violent crimes during the 2010 Philippine Election gun ban. The projects goal was to challenge the official PNP's claims[5] that the ban put in place during the 2010 elections was successful and therefore should be extended permanently.
As of 9 June 2010, the project recorded 429 incidents in which there were 359 injuries and 566 fatalities.[6]
[edit] Organizational structure
In line with Philippine law, PROGUN is governed by a board of 15 directors. After the resignation of Chairman Mike Melchor [7] in June 2010, leadership was taken up by President, Atty. JJ D. Mendoza, and Secretary-General, Atty. Ticky Tabujara.
The organization's membership is made up of 15,000 card-carrying members but it also enjoys the support of 1.2 million sympathetic licensed gun owners throughout the Philippines.[8]
[edit] Relations with other organizations
At its inception, PROGUN was funded by the Association of Firearms & Ammunition Dealers of the Philippines, Inc. (AFAD).[9] However, disagreements in approach to lobbying caused the two organizations to drift apart during the first decade of 2000. In 2010, AFAD backed the launch[10] of a new firearms group, The A2S5 Coalition, which was formed to oppose the extension of the 2010 election gun ban.[4]
During the Philippine National Police Gun Summit in June 2010, a previously unknown organization called "Total Pro-Gun Confederation" was selected to speak on behalf of the Philippine Firearms community. In a classic example of a false flag operation, its designated representative, Mr. Christopher Punla, gave a controversial speech [11] which appeared to mock the firearms community. PROGUN later issued a statement denying any connection with the "Total Pro-Gun Confederation", saying that it used the 'PROGUN' registered trademark "without license or authority".[12]
[edit] See also
- Gun safety
- National Rifle Association
- National Rifle Association of the United Kingdom
- Election Related Gun Violence in the Philippines
- Right to keep and bear arms
[edit] References
- ↑ About PROGUN
- ↑ PROGUN Position Paper on House Bill No. 6776
- ↑ 14th Congress House Bill No. 6776
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Philippine Daily Inquirer: PNP wants gun ban extended
- ↑ Zamboanga Times: PNP mulls over clamor to extend firearm ban
- ↑ PROGUN 2010 Election gun ban statistics project
- ↑ PROGUN CHAIRMAN RESIGNS!
- ↑ The Philippine Star: Gun owners' group asks PNP to reconsider gun ban extension
- ↑ AFAD website
- ↑ The Philippine Star: Coalition launched to oppose gun ban
- ↑ Philippine Daily Inquirer: 7 of 10 Metro folk favor gun ban extension
- ↑ Progun Disavows "Total Progun" and Perry Punla
[edit] External links
- PROGUN Website
- The Philippine Star: A total gun ban is unacceptable
- Business World: Stricter firearm control set after lifting of gun ban on June 9
- ABS-CBN News: After smoking challenge, Noy dared to pass total gun ban
- The Philippine Star: Gun owners' group asks PNP to reconsider gun ban extension
- GMANews.TV: House committee rejects gun ban proposal
