With the total gun ban implemented for the national elections in the Philippines. Many airsoft players are left with just being stuck to 1 or 2 sites where they are allowed to store their airsoft guns and play there while they sit it out until the mid of June 2010 for the gun ban to expire. However, this does not deter them from petitioning the country's Supreme Court to exempt airsoft from the gun ban.

Enan Orceo of the DENR-Askal team and head of the Eastern Bloc Alliance/Eastern Rizal, and a lawyer himself petitioned the Supreme Court to hear the arguments of the airsoft player why they should be exempted from the election gun ban. Citing sections from the Philippine Constitution and that the Election Commission's resolution in including airsoft in the ban "In including airsoft gun within the meaning of firearm, the subject resolution in effect criminalizes the sport and playing the game make it irrelevant if one’s possession of airsoft gun and their replica/imitation is now covered by prohibited acts notwithstanding that there is still no law that governs the use thereof."

The airsoft players in the Philippines are in no hurry for the Supreme Court to rule on this. But they have been given fair notices that it will be considered. With this, it also sets a precedent that may eventually pave the way for the repeal of the L0I 1264 which was promulgated by the late dictator, Ferdinand Marcos, and will fully legalise the use of airsoft.

We wish them all the luck and support in this effort. Though news this week coming from the Philippines is that the head of the Quezon City Police, which is the largest police force in the country, wants to institutionalise the total gun ban, as it is the present gun ban is helping in bringing down criminality involving the use of guns in his area. Now, the airsoft players will need to cross the fingers that the whole police institution would not be considering this after the elections.

Full text of the Supreme Court Petition here.

Click the link on "QC cops want to institutionalize total gun ban".