‘The rifle has the devil inside’ Gun Culture in South Eastern Europe
‘The rifle has the devil inside’ Gun Culture in South Eastern Europe

Author(s): Author Not Specified
Subject(s): Politics / Political Sciences, Politics, Anthropology, Security and defense, Military policy
Published by: The South Eastern and Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SEESAC)
Keywords: Gun Culture; South Eastern Europe; SALW
Summary/Abstract: SALW control stakeholders and practitioners within South Eastern Europe (SEE) are often told that weapon registration and collection programmes are ineffective because guns are an intrinsic part of ‘cultures’ in the region. In addition, international and local observers often explain high levels of gun ownership and use in SEE by stating there is a strong ‘gun culture’. In contrast, survey results on the public’s perception of guns, suggest that ‘culture’ and ‘tradition’ are not principal reasons for gun ownership in the region. Thus, it is a matter of continued debate to what extent and which types of gun ownership and use are rendered acceptable and legitimate by certain cultural beliefs and practices. This report examines how cultural beliefs and practices influence gun ownership and use in SEE, and how these might affect SALW control interventions. An anthropological approach was taken to better understand the reasons for civilian gun ownership and use, and the ways in which society represents these behaviours, in Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Moldova, Serbia and Montenegro (including the UN Administered Territory of Kosovo). A wide variety of research tools were used including household surveys (HHS) conducted by SEESAC and UNDP, focus group transcripts, secondary literature searches, statistical data, anthropological field studies, the Internet, print and electronic media.

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