Iceland review - 2019, Page 112

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Iceland Review
a change in the law to allow officers to
carry weapons to meet what many fear is
the growing presence of firearms in the
Reykjavík underworld, but polls show
that Icelanders overwhelmingly oppose
this idea.
“There is significant opposition,”
Helgi tells us. “People are extremely
uncomfortable with the idea of armed
officers patrolling the streets, and
resistant to arguments by law enforce-
ment who want to be better prepared
to respond to armed criminals. Officers
have been armed at some large public
events in downtown Reykjavík in recent
years, for example on Icelandic National
Day, June 17, which was met with great
resentment by many Icelanders.”
Recent polls show that only a quarter of
Icelanders support officers being armed
while on duty, and one in two agrees
that officers can have access to a locked
firearm in their vehicles.
This could change, Helgi argues.
“Trust in the police is very high in
Iceland, compared to other countries.
It’s therefore likely that if we were to
see a terrorist attack or a serious crime
committed with a gun, Icelanders would
be willing to defer to the judgement
of the police force when it comes to
arming officers.” However, many fear
that arming the police would only spark
an arms race among criminals and the
idea that armed officers on the streets
of Reykjavík are a necessary response
to extremism in other countries seems
preposterous to most Icelanders.
In order to qualify for a gun permit, pro-
spective gun owners must practice marks-
manship under supervision of instructors.