Mexican children set example for adults with toy gun amnesty

Children and teenagers in a violent region of Mexico have reportedly been swapping plastic weapons for less violent toys in an initiative aimed at promoting a "culture of peace".

Several thousand children swapped toy swords, rifles, heavy weapons and even real knives in the city of Monterrey, according to the BBC.

Patricia Salazar Marroquín, a local official, said the amnesty would help to quell the culture of violence in the district of Nuevo Leon.

These actions remove the incentive for the use of violent games and promote family time.

• Patricia Salazar Marroquín

Mexico is renowned for its high level of gun deaths and drug-related violence, with over 11,000 people having died from firearm incidents in one year alone.

A similar scheme in Mexico City in 2012 saw real guns swapped for cash and toys in a bid to stop violence in the capital.

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