STATISTICS provided by the Firearm Licensing Authority (FLA) indicate that in the last five years more than half of women applicants were granted firearm licences.

In a bid to dispel criticism that the FLA was biased against women in the granting of licences, the entity on Tuesday disclosed that 57.5 per cent or 898 of the 1,560 female applicants over the past five years were granted firearm licences.

The entity noted, however, that far more men, 16,997, applied over the same period, with 7,380 receiving permits and 9,617 being denied.

According to FLA Chairman Colonel Audley Carter, what exists is a rigorous, intense and extremely careful system that determines who should be given or denied a gun permit. Colonel Carter said the board which he leads comprises individuals of unquestionable integrity. He also defended the integrity of FLA investigators.

“In recent days I have heard questions about the experience level of persons charged with carrying out investigations. Investigators are carefully selected. They are usually retired persons from the Jamaica Constabulary Force and the Jamaica Defence Force. All of our investigators are trained in investigation techniques, are experienced and they know what they are doing. I reassure you that it is a complete, intense and carefully executed process, because we realise that mistakes can be very costly,” Colonel Carter said during a press conference on Tuesday at AC Hotel in St Andrew.

On the issue of applicants wanting the FLA to reveal reasons for denial, Colonel Carter said such a practice would amount to a serious breach.

“… There are many reasons why that is not so. It would be a serious breach to be exposing information from certain institutions to the public. By suddenly disclosing the reasons for denial, you might actually be breaking up homes,” he said.

“There are instances where we have had files and in a file is enclosed a correspondence from a spouse asking the FLA, ‘Please, do not grant my other half a firearm licence because he has a tendency to violence and abuse. If we were to disclose this to the applicant, that this information is coming from your other half [that would be a problem],” Colonel Carter argued.

The FLA chairman added that it was important to dispel rumours that have surfaced in recent times about the entity, because elements were determined to “take down the FLA at any cost”. One rumour he addressed was that a Chinese couple who was murdered in Southfield, St Elizabeth, in January had been previously denied gun permits by the FLA.

“I extend our condolences and we continue to condemn the horrendous acts. I want to state here and now that neither the gentleman nor his wife made any application for firearm licences at the FLA,” he said.