124:
financial insurance against firearm discharge under legal circumstances - the first paid memberships were implemented in
December 2015. Other changes included a more inclusive and simplified brand name (changing from the old English and Afrikaans abbreviations "Wapeneienaars Suid Africa / Gun Owners South Africa" (WESA/GOSA), to just the English abbreviation, and a logo update. Additionally, GOSA also contributed a significant amount of funding to Dr. David Klatzow's work on the validity of ballistic fingerprinting, which delivered a scathing rebuke of the 'science' in his article "Defective Science: An Inquiry into the Validity of Ballistic Fingerprinting as a Reliable Tool and into the Feasibility of Establishing an Effective national Ballistic Imaging Database". Towards the end of 2015, it became clear that paid membership structures in their current form were inefficient and putting the finances at a deficit. They were unbundled and simplified, with the insurance offering being moved to Gunsure (a now discontinued firearm insurance firm), and the membership offerings instead reflecting discount legal services for firearm administrative matters pertaining to firearm licensing, as well as access to full legal services at a pre-negotiated rate. With the collapse of Gunsure, GOSA started to look back at bundling a reformed insurance membership option for firearm owners in January 2018.
108:
74:. It was founded on 26 January 2004 by Thomas Eastes and nine associates invited by him, Abios Khoele, Charl van Wyk, Pieter van Wyk, Juan de Greeff, Martin Hedington, Dr. Richard Wesson, Peter Moss, Brett Nortje and Dick Boothroyd. Because resources were limited to the voluntary efforts of its ten founders, it functioned as an advocacy group and no attempt was made to make it a membership based organisation. That became possible only when the founders handed control to Paul Oxley in 2014. Membership has since grown rapidly and GOSA is now the biggest organisation of its kind and thus able to defend firearm ownership rights more effectively.
128:
and Cape Town, where the capital and parliamentary precinct are based respectively), a new website, and put a presence with a permanent stand at the Huntex firearms and hunting expo in
Gauteng and the Eastern Cape. The investment in a Huntex presence dealt a negative drag to GOSA, and the leadership quickly culled the initiative before the 2018 Huntex expos went ahead. By November 2017, GOSA had stabilized the financial flows again.
187:, which is aimed at teaching and increasing female participation in firearm related activities - a very effective woman's empowerment and anti-GBV campaign. The campaign is run by female organisers, and regularly helps new female firearm owners with carry techniques, training, and promoting firearm safety and etiquette.GOSA Girls On Fire have run basic firearms courses for an estimated 5 000 woman since then.
156:. GOSA argued that the first claim was unsubstantiated and the second was biased, and asked for Jacaranda FM to publicly retract the statements. The article was pulled once controversy surrounding the claims came about, but no reason for taking the piece down was given. The Press Ombud, Johan Retief, ruled that Jacaranda had "to publish a retraction, correction or explanation as to
24:
131:
In the year from
January 2016 until December 2017, Facebook membership had grown from just shy of 21 000 members, to 35 000 (they now stand at over 96 000). Paid membership growth was slower, rising from zero in late 2015, to over three thousand at the end of 2017 and, as at 2021 stand at almost 10
127:
With the start to 2017, the reformed membership structures had started turning significant profits for the organisation, and this afforded the ability to hire a small complement of full time staff, allow the funding of more travelling expenses for official business (such as flights between
Pretoria
116:
Gun Owners South Africa was founded in 2004 in response to disillusionment with the other established firearm rights group, the South
African Gun Owners Association (SAGA). SAGA has been in existence since 1985, and is still active to present day. Coincidentally Paul Oxley was a founder of SAGA in
123:
By 2015, the GOSA leadership had realised that disillusionment with SAGA was not going to change any time soon, and started to rapidly put in place the necessary mechanisms of moving towards a professionally organised organisation, including a paid membership structure and benefits such as legal
190:
GOSA hosted their first
Gauteng Firearms Festival in 2018, and up until the Covid 19 pandemic closed everything down had hosted Firearms Festivals in Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Durban and Pretoria, focusing on showcasing firearm and self-defence exhibits and hosting shooting competitions and
89:(APLA) militants attacked the church with automatic rifles and a grenade. Van Wyk was armed with a five-shot snub nosed revolver at the time, and returned fire, prompting the attackers to flee. The death toll stood at eleven, and an injured count of fifty-eight when the chaos ended.
199:
GOSA is a registered non-profit company in South Africa and is applying for public benefit organisation status, it is headed by a chairperson (an executive position), who chairs an executive committee, which was created in 2015. The executive committee is currently composed of:
117:
1985. In the years 2004 until 2014, because GOSA was a very small organisation it was not well known to the general public. But it used its limited resources to best effect via the media which was, and still is, the best way to reach the public.
143:
after an article on the latter's website claimed that research shows people are four times more likely to have their own firearms used against them; and that having a firearm in one's home "has been proven to increase the risk of a firearm
111:
A photo taken at the founding of Gun Owners South Africa at the Parow Civic Centre in Cape Town, attended by Larry Pratt of Gun Owners of
America.Left to right: T.F. Eastes, P. van Wyk, A. Khoele, W. de Waal, L. Pratt, R. Boothroyd, C. van
77:
GOSA is the most diverse firearms group in South Africa, on levels ranging from race, gender, and religion, to political affiliation and income levels. GOSA’s membership is on public display on its
Facebook page.
120:
In 2011, the South
African homicide rate started a gradual climbing trend, and in 2013, revelations of the bad state of affairs and corruption at the Central Firearms Registry had emerged.
184:
132:
000. In a country of between 2.5 million to 3.0 million firearm owners, these numbers are very low, and GOSA faces an uphill battle in mobilising as many as possible.
107:
495:
485:
168:
GOSA is not associated with any political parties or candidates, and opts instead to engage and lobby directly with political entities willing to engage.
500:
505:
357:
99:, spoke at a GOSA conference at the time of GOSA's founding, and publicly criticised the South African police chief who opposed the group.
171:
On the other hand, within this sphere GOSA is diametrically opposed to the disarmament of law abiding citizens and organizations, such as
490:
235:
86:
295:
382:
Bopape, L.; Snyman, R. "An
Analysis of the Measures Used to Control Firearms in South Africa: Looking Back and Looking Forward".
397:
226:
GOSA's organisational structure also includes numerous volunteers who operate and advocate for GOSA with no remuneration.
270:
326:
136:
437:
342:
172:
96:
85:, was a congregant at the St. James Church in Cape Town when the St. James Church Massacre happened.
361:
183:
GOSA currently runs the GOSA Girls on Fire campaign, which was started in 2016 to coincide with the
421:
291:
285:
479:
82:
140:
71:
135:
In February 2018, Jonathan Wright lodged a complaint on behalf of GOSA with the
92:
255:
160:
the story was pulled", which is required by section 1.10 of the Press Code.
451:
311:
145:
149:
23:
106:
153:
48:
468:
256:"GOSA Facebook Page; GOSA : Gun Owners South Africa"
327:"SAPS: R400 million firearms control system in shambles"
284:Horwitz, Joshua; Anderson, Casey (1 January 2009).
43:
33:
436:
341:
70:) is a firearms rights and advocacy group in the
290:. University of Michigan Press. pp. 48–.
287:Guns, Democracy, and the Insurrectionist Idea
8:
16:
22:
15:
271:"20 years later St James horror endures"
247:
81:One of the founding members of GOSA,
7:
386:(Special Edition Number 5): 114–130.
384:South African Journal of Criminology
152:in the home" unless it is kept in a
496:2006 establishments in South Africa
486:Political movements in South Africa
236:Firearms regulation in South Africa
210:Zaahir Manuel (vice chair – south)
207:Tshepi Mmekwa (vice chair – north)
14:
501:Organizations established in 2006
204:Paul Oxley (sitting chairperson)
87:Azanian People’s Liberation Army
506:Advocacy groups in South Africa
1:
175:, which promote that agenda.
137:Press Council of South Africa
269:Legg, Kieren; Maditla, Neo.
28:Gun Owners South Africa logo
522:
491:Gun rights advocacy groups
21:
195:Organisational structure
72:Republic of South Africa
438:"Address to Volunteers"
402:www.presscouncil.org.za
358:"Address to Volunteers"
343:"Address to Volunteers"
64:Gun Owners South Africa
17:Gun Owners South Africa
113:
398:"The Press Ombudsman"
173:Gun Free South Africa
110:
97:Gun Owners of America
422:"GOSA Girls on Fire"
185:16 Days of Activism
18:
312:"SAGA at 30 Years"
164:Political activity
114:
325:Knoetze, Daneel.
216:Montenique Booley
141:Jacaranda 94.2 FM
61:
60:
513:
472:
471:
469:Official website
454:
449:
443:
442:
440:
432:
426:
425:
418:
412:
411:
409:
408:
394:
388:
387:
379:
373:
372:
370:
369:
360:. Archived from
354:
348:
347:
345:
337:
331:
330:
322:
316:
315:
308:
302:
301:
281:
275:
274:
266:
260:
259:
252:
66:(abbreviated to
57:
54:
52:
50:
26:
19:
521:
520:
516:
515:
514:
512:
511:
510:
476:
475:
467:
466:
463:
458:
457:
450:
446:
434:
433:
429:
420:
419:
415:
406:
404:
396:
395:
391:
381:
380:
376:
367:
365:
356:
355:
351:
339:
338:
334:
324:
323:
319:
310:
309:
305:
298:
283:
282:
278:
268:
267:
263:
254:
253:
249:
244:
232:
197:
181:
166:
105:
47:
36:
29:
12:
11:
5:
519:
517:
509:
508:
503:
498:
493:
488:
478:
477:
474:
473:
462:
461:External links
459:
456:
455:
444:
427:
413:
389:
374:
349:
332:
317:
303:
296:
276:
261:
246:
245:
243:
240:
239:
238:
231:
228:
224:
223:
220:
219:Gideon Joubert
217:
214:
213:Wouter De Waal
211:
208:
205:
196:
193:
180:
177:
165:
162:
104:
101:
59:
58:
45:
41:
40:
37:
34:
31:
30:
27:
13:
10:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
518:
507:
504:
502:
499:
497:
494:
492:
489:
487:
484:
483:
481:
470:
465:
464:
460:
453:
448:
445:
439:
435:Oxley, Paul.
431:
428:
423:
417:
414:
403:
399:
393:
390:
385:
378:
375:
364:on 2018-01-16
363:
359:
353:
350:
344:
340:Oxley, Paul.
336:
333:
328:
321:
318:
313:
307:
304:
299:
297:0-472-02199-0
293:
289:
288:
280:
277:
272:
265:
262:
257:
251:
248:
241:
237:
234:
233:
229:
227:
221:
218:
215:
212:
209:
206:
203:
202:
201:
194:
192:
188:
186:
178:
176:
174:
169:
163:
161:
159:
155:
151:
147:
142:
138:
133:
129:
125:
121:
118:
109:
102:
100:
98:
94:
90:
88:
84:
83:Charl van Wyk
79:
75:
73:
69:
65:
56:
46:
42:
38:
32:
25:
20:
447:
430:
416:
405:. Retrieved
401:
392:
383:
377:
366:. Retrieved
362:the original
352:
335:
320:
306:
286:
279:
264:
250:
225:
198:
191:activities.
189:
182:
170:
167:
157:
134:
130:
126:
122:
119:
115:
91:
80:
76:
67:
63:
62:
222:Gugu Bohali
148:or firearm
93:Larry Pratt
51:.gosaonline
35:Chairperson
480:Categories
407:2018-07-12
368:2018-01-15
242:References
95:, head of
39:Paul Oxley
452:GOSA EXCO
230:See also
179:Programs
146:homicide
139:against
150:suicide
103:History
44:Website
294:
292:ISBN
154:safe
68:GOSA
158:why
112:Wyk
55:.za
53:.co
49:www
482::
400:.
441:.
424:.
410:.
371:.
346:.
329:.
314:.
300:.
273:.
258:.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
