WELLINGTON, New Zealand—New Zealanders handed in more than 50,000 guns during a buyback program following a ban on assault weapons. Authorities said Saturday their country will be a safer place, but critics say the process was flawed and many owners have illegally stashed their firearms.
The government banned the most lethal types of semi-automatic weapons less than a month after a lone gunman in March killed 51 worshippers at two Christchurch mosques. The police then launched a six-month program to buy the newly banned weapons from owners.
