‘Machete amnesty’ announced by state government in Australia before total ban takes effect

‘Machete amnesty’ announced by state government in Australia before total ban takes effect. (Photo supplied by SUI).

Australia’s Victorian Government has set up a “machete amnesty” in support of disposing machetes safely from Sept. 1 until November, as the southeastern state becomes the first to carry out a ban on the weapons.

Machetes will be criminalized in Victoria on Sept. 1, following a series of violent knife crimes and home invasions, Sky News Australia reported.

“Owning, carrying, using, buying, or selling a machete without a valid exemption or approval will be a criminal offence,” a statement from the Premier of Victoria, Jacinta Allan reads. This could lead to jail time of up to two years, or fines of up to AUD$47,000 (CAD$41,000).

Multiple police stations in the state will become drop-off points for the soon-to-be-illegal weapons, according to the government website.

Amazon.com has also removed machetes for purchase in Australia, the statement says.

“These knives destroy lives – so we’re taking them off the streets,” Allan says in the statement.

“Victorians have zero tolerance for knife crime and so do we – we’re enacting this ban and boosting Victoria Police’s powers because community safety always comes first.”

Police have seized a record-number of illegal weapons in Victoria, including knives, since the beginning of the year, with an average of 44 knives confiscated each day, according to the Australian news outlet.

Victoria first announced legislative changes to the Control of Weapons Act in March, making selling or possessing machetes illegal.

The ban defines weapons as “knives with a cutting blade longer than 20 cm,” and does not include knives used for cooking.

Last August, an amnesty and compensation scheme for people who possessed “zombie-style knives” and machetes was introduced in England and Wales by James Cleverly, the home secretary of U.K. at the time.

The amnesty scheme was announced a month prior to the subsequent ban on the “statement” weapons, BBC reported.

The new legislation made owning, making, transporting or selling these weapons a criminal offence.

According to Statistics Canada, there were 250 deaths in Canada due to knife crimes in the last year.