On 16 December 1994, a young man handed an assault rifle to a minister in a Johannesburg church. The minister was Peter Storey, and the gun was surrendered as part of a national firearms amnesty organised with President Nelson Mandela’s support to promote peace following South Africa’s first democratic elections on 27 April that year. Gun Free SA was formally established the following year, with Bishop Peter Storey as Chairperson and Adèle Kirsten as National Coordinator. Over the past 30 years, GFSA has helped call the shots, fundamentally shaping gun control in South Africa and become a leading, trusted voice in gun violence prevention advocacy.
