EDITORIAL — An illegal industry that might not be dead just yet

In a span of two days, two illegal gun-manufacturing operations were busted by policemen in Danao City.

First to fall was a gun-making operation in Purok 5, Barangay Masaba, that was raided last May 16. Police arrested a 46-year-old suspect and seized from the site several unfinished pistols and pistol barrels, live ammunition, firearm magazines, and various metalworking tools and equipment.

The following day another gun-making operation was raided in Sitio Patag, Barangay Manlayag, where police recovered an unfinished rifle, a .22 cal. revolver, live ammunition, firearm magazines, and tools for manufacturing gun parts. This time the gunsmith managed to escape.

Many of us thought that the days of illegal gun manufacturing in Danao City were over. Some time back, several people claiming to be the last of the Danao gunsmiths even surrendered their tools to the police to symbolize the end of the illegal gun industry there, but apparently this isn’t the case.

Illegal gunsmiths don’t make guns then put them up for sale hoping that someone will buy them; they only make them if an “order” comes through, or if there is a guaranteed sale --meaning that someone asked them to make a gun for them.

Why would someone surreptitiously ask for a gun? Or ask for one that isn’t registered or cannot easily be traced? Your guess is as good as ours, but we can be certain it’s not to uphold the law.

While there was indeed a time when the clandestine gun-making industries of Danao were needed --and this was during the Japanese occupation in World War II to supply the resistance and guerrilla movement with arms-- they are no longer needed today, at least not by law-abiding citizens.

As long as loose guns are around there is always the chance that these will find their way into the hands of those who shouldn’t have guns. And when those who shouldn’t have guns have them, this is when the trouble starts.