Philippine police to allow journalists under threat to carry guns

AP has this article about how tough it is to be a journalist in the Philippines.

Sixty-seven journalists in the Philippines have been killed since 1986--23 of them in the past three years alone, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, or NUJP, said. The mostly unresolved deaths prompted the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists to describe the Philippines as the world's "most murderous" country for reporters.

So...

Bataoil said the police will issue permits to journalists who are licensed gun owners to carry firearms outside their residence only if they prove there is a "verified threat" on their lives.

However...

Gun owners have to undergo neuro-psychological and drug tests plus a gun safety seminar before they are issued licenses.

I have no objection to a gun safety seminar, but I would be interested to see what kind of neuro-psychological test they are subjected to. It reminds me of Superintendant Fowler's attitude on the Britcom The Thin Blue Line: "Anyone who thinks they need a gun is obviously too unbalanced to own one." That's a paraphrase, I don't remember the exact words, but then, it's only a TV show.