Switzerland rejects tighter gun controls

13 February 2011

Last updated at 19:07 GMT

Switzerland rejects tighter gun controls

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Swiss voters have rejected proposed tighter controls on gun ownership, final results show.

Twenty of the 26 cantons and 56.3% of voters rejected the plan, meaning the current system allowing army-issue weapons to be kept at home will remain.

Supporters of the tighter curbs wanted to have weapons kept in armouries and were demanding stricter checks on gun owners.

Opponents said the move would have undermined trust in the army.

For the proposal to succeed, it required the support of the majority of both citizens and cantons.

Geneva and Basel both bucked the trend by approving it, according to the Swissinfo website.

But German- and Italian-speaking cantons outvoted the plan's supporters in the French-speaking west.

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ENDS

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