To make matters even more interesting, Switzerland has no standing army to defend its borders. It depends on gun ownership of its citizens to protect its borders. So trusting is the Swiss government of its citizens, the government issues a fully automatic assault weapon and ammunition to each twenty year old male, after training, and they are required to keep the weapon in their home. At the age of 45, when the citizen soldier's defense obligation is complete, they are allowed to keep the military firearm for their own personal use. One must ask a question.
Lets look at the data.
Surprisingly, Switzerland has a population of about 7.1 million people. This gives them a murder rate of 1.36 murders per 100,000 residents. Now compare this with Washington, DC, which has had a total ban on handgun ownership for over twenty years, and you will find DC's homicide rate is almost exactly 59 times higher than Switzerland. Part of it lies in the expectations of the people and the government. Switzerland has always regarded its citizenship status as a privilege, not a right.