If corporal punishment is banned, won’t that lead to children being treated in more horrible ways emotional abuse, humiliation or locking them up?
Children have a right to protection not only from corporal punishment, but also from all other forms of cruel or degrading punishment or treatment. Law reform needs to be linked to awareness raising and promotion of positive, non-violent relationships with children. Parents want their children to have the best possible start in life. Parents who hit their children do not feel good about it they generally feel upset and guilty. Most of them would welcome advice on how to prevent and solve conflicts with their children. Positive parenting policies help parents enable their children to understand, accept and respect rules (discipline) without using any kind of violence, physical or emotional. Moving on from hitting and humiliating children to regarding them as people and rights-holders alongside the rest of us improves family life for everyone.
