An addition to the debate on corporal punishment

Dec 17, 2014 Letters

Dear Editor,
I have fought many battles on various fronts in my time, won many and lost a few. The conversation on the abolition of corporal punishment is just another of those battles and I shall win no matter what. This may not happen in my lifetime but the records will show and my children or grandchildren would be able to testify, with confidence, that my dad/granddad contributed to this debate.
My aim today is to share with fellow Guyanese one of many examples where the abolition of corporal punishment has been successful. My research is guided by Joan E Durrant, PhD – a leading Child Clinical Psychologist and Associate Professor of Family Social Sciences, not Wikipedia, and I have chosen Sweden, one of the first countries in the world to abolish corporal punishment.
Sweden was chosen because I would like to alleviate the fears of those who are of the opinion that we will wake up one morning and corporal punishment would be consigned to history. Change involves time unless there is a Coup d’etat. In Sweden the whole process took 51years from 1928 (sufficient concern) to 1979 (total ban on spanking), and along that journey numerous conversations, assessments, evaluations and amendments occurred.
Here is the timeline. In 1928, there was sufficient concern about this situation that the Education Act was amended to forbid corporal punishment in the secondary schools. The success of this early measure, together with continuing concern about the level of violence permitted toward children in the home, led to a change in the Parenthood and Guardianship Code (a civil code governing family law) in 1949.
In an attempt to reduce severe beatings, the word “punish” was replaced by “reprimand” in the section defining permissible parental behaviour. In 1957, the section permitting parents to use force in reprimanding their children was completely removed from the Penal Code. The intent of this change was to provide children with the same protection from assault that adults receive and to clarify the grounds for criminal prosecution of parents who abused their children.
Parents’ rights to use corporal punishment had still not been eliminated completely. In 1979, the proposal of a total ban on corporal punishment was put to a vote in Parliament following a range of successful longitudinal studies and evaluations. There was virtually no opposition; the proposal was supported by all parties and the final vote was 259 in favour and 6 against (Sverne, 1994).
The approach to this achievement was multifaceted and complex. The people of Sweden, the majority, were willing to experiment on this rather radical and intrusive development. The purpose of the ‘change in the law’ was to make it clear to Swedish citizens that hitting children is not permitted. It was also intended to educate parents about the importance of giving their children good care.
It removed what could be construed as a silent sanction of corporal punishment and is the culmination of an evolutionary process that saw Swedish society increasingly reject corporal punishment as a means of educating children and increasingly recognize the rights of children as individuals. It was the educational component of the law that was seen as most important, rather than the potential for legal penalties.
Here are a few quotes that will trigger a rethink in those who I would refer to as the stubborn. “The greatest terror a child can have is that he is not loved, and rejection is the hell he fears” (John Steinbeck). “There never was a time when a major social problem was solved by beating a child. And there never will be such a time” (Dr. C. Everett Koop).
“If we are ever to turn toward a kindlier society and a safer world, a revulsion against the physical punishment of children would be a good place to start.” (Dr. Benjamin Spock). “When will our consciences grow so tender that we will act to prevent human misery rather than avenge it?” (Eleanor Roosevelt). “If we are to teach real peace in this world, and if we are to carry on a real war against war, we shall have to begin with the children” (Mahatma Gandhi). “There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children” (Nelson Mandela).
Brendon Mounter

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An addition to the debate on corporal punishment

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