BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) – Brazil plans to begin buying guns from private citizens in an attempt to keep firearms off the streets of a country with one of the highest murder rates in the world.

A spokeswoman for the Justice Ministry said yesterday she did not know when the programme would be launched, but the government budgeted 10 million reals (US$3.3 million) for the purchases Tuesday evening.

The government hopes to take 80,000 guns off the street by the end of the year through the programme.

Under the new program, the government will pay 300 reals (US$100) for an assault rifle, 200 reals (US$66) for a rifle and 100 reals (US$33) per pistol.

Citizens will be compensated for both registered and unregistered weapons. Those who turn in unregistered firearms will not be charged with illegal arms possession if they turn them in before December 23, when tough new law takes affect.

The new law prohibits possession of firearms in public places such as sports arenas, churches, government buildings and schools. It also raises the minimum age for gun ownership from 18 to 25 years and requires gun owners to register their weapons with both the defense ministry and the justice ministry.

Brazil has the world’s fourth highest murder rate with 27.1 homicides per 100,000 people, according to UNESCO. Sixty-eight per cent of those killings are committed using firearms.

The country also plans to conduct a nationwide referendum in 2005 on whether to ban guns almost entirely.