Amnesty International issues travel warning to those visiting United States due to ongoing rampant gun violence

USA

One of the world’s leading human rights organizations says people should think about contingency plans when passing through America.

Amnesty International’s travel advisory also warns visitors to the United States “exercise extreme caution”.

This has been issued “in light of ongoing high levels of gun violence in the country” and comes in the wake of mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio.

“Depending on the traveler’s gender identity, race, country of origin, ethnic background, or sexual orientation, they may be at higher risk of being targeted with gun violence, and should plan accordingly,” Amnesty International declared.

The advisory states that visitors to the country need to “be wary of the ubiquity of firearms among the population”.

It also suggests avoiding places where large numbers of people gather.

Moreover, caution should be exercised in bars, nightclubs, and casinos in the United States.

“Under international human rights law, the United States has an obligation to enact a range of measures at the federal, state, and local levels to regulate access to firearms and to protect the rights of people to live and move about freely without the threat of gun violence,” Amnesty International stated. “The government has not taken sufficient steps to meet this obligation.”

The declaration comes a year after long-time environmental and anti-apartheid activist Kumi Naidoo became secretary general of Amnesty International.

There are 4.43 deaths per 100,000 in the United States every year from gun violence, according to NPR.

The BBC recently cited a survey saying that about 40 percent of Americans live in a home with firearm. There are between 83 and 120.5 firearms per 100 residents in the United States, depending on the estimate.

A 2018 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that six countries—Brazil, the United States, Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, and Guatemala—accounted for more than 50 percent of firearm-related deaths in 2016.

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