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care any firearms which they may possess, but others
may be more careless, and their firearms might be
stolen and might get into the hands of armed robbers
and other criminals. The new list of exempted persons
will be a very restricted one, except of course that
members of the naval, military, air, volunteer, police
and district watch services will be exempted in respect
of the arms and ammunition used by them in connection
with their duties. There will be power to grant
exemption to others, but this exemption can always be
limited to particular weapons or ammunition where that
is thought desirable.
5.
Section 5 of this Ordinance amends section 4 of
the principal Ordinance in order to carry out the same
policy of greater restriction in the number of persons
entitled to possess firearms. The section deals inter
alia with the question of firearms on board vessels.
The present general provision on this subject is that
the owner or master of any vessel may have on board
"such arms and ammunition as are reasonably necessary
for the protection of such vessel". Sub-section (9)
of the proposed new section 4 will take out of this
exemption vessels which regularly include in their ports
of call any place on the East Coast of Asia between
Vladivostok and Singapore, or any place on any river
flowing into the sea on the East Coast of Asia between
Vladivostok and Singapore, or any place in Formosa,
provided that the usual extreme trading limits of such
vessels do not extend beyond the places specified above.
Such vessels will not be allowed to carry arms while within
the waters of the Colony except under licence from the
Inspector General of Police, which is to be the new title