Ottawa Considers Abolishing Child Spanking
An NDP bill to criminalize spanking of children is making its way through Ottawa.
New Democrat Peter Julian's initiative received support from the Bloc Québécois and the Liberals on Wednesday, enough to be studied by the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights. The Conservatives are the only ones who are clearly opposed to it.
"I see that countries like Iran, Saudi Arabia and Russia still allow corporal punishment of children. However, our allies, the democratic countries, agree to ban this practice. Why?" asked Julian during a debate on the subject in the fall.
Elected officials from the Bloc Québécois and the Liberal government have raised concerns that teachers could be criminalized simply for defending themselves against violent students.
Conservative Damien Kurek has also voiced the concerns of some teachers' organisations, but more generally he sees it as "increased state control" over children's education.
"It is absolutely fundamental to ensure that parents have all the latitude they need to raise well-rounded and productive citizens," he said.
Spanking around the worldBanned in many countries, spanking remains common around the world.
Recent figures from the World Health Organization (WHO) show that about 60% of children between the ages of 2 and 14 "regularly experience corporal punishment by their parents or other caregivers."
Spanking in CanadaIn Canada, spanking is tolerated under section 43 of the Criminal Code, which states that "every teacher, parent or substitute for a parent is justified in using force to correct a pupil or child, as the case may be, in the care of the teacher, provided that the force does not exceed the reasonable extent in the circumstances."
It is precisely this section that MP Julian is seeking to repeal.
Despite occasional debates over the years, section 43 has remained virtually unchanged since the first version of the Criminal Code in 1892. Only the reference to 'apprentices' and 'primary school teachers' has been removed.
Spanking rebounded in the Supreme Court in 2004 in a lawsuit brought by the Canadian Foundation for Children, Youth and the Law.
By a vote of six to three, the country's highest court ruled that section 43 does not infringe on children's right to security and equality, or their right to be free from "cruel and unusual treatment or punishment."
According to them, spanking is justifiable as long as the child is able to "understand and benefit from the correction", that the force used is "transient and negligible" and that it must not have a detrimental or degrading effect on the child.
New Democrat Peter Julian's initiative received support from the Bloc Québécois and the Liberals on Wednesday, enough to be studied by the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights. The Conservatives are the only ones who are clearly opposed to it.
"I see that countries like Iran, Saudi Arabia and Russia still allow corporal punishment of children. However, our allies, the democratic countries, agree to ban this practice. Why?" asked Julian during a debate on the subject in the fall.
Elected officials from the Bloc Québécois and the Liberal government have raised concerns that teachers could be criminalized simply for defending themselves against violent students.
Conservative Damien Kurek has also voiced the concerns of some teachers' organisations, but more generally he sees it as "increased state control" over children's education.
"It is absolutely fundamental to ensure that parents have all the latitude they need to raise well-rounded and productive citizens," he said.
Spanking around the worldBanned in many countries, spanking remains common around the world.
Recent figures from the World Health Organization (WHO) show that about 60% of children between the ages of 2 and 14 "regularly experience corporal punishment by their parents or other caregivers."
Spanking in CanadaIn Canada, spanking is tolerated under section 43 of the Criminal Code, which states that "every teacher, parent or substitute for a parent is justified in using force to correct a pupil or child, as the case may be, in the care of the teacher, provided that the force does not exceed the reasonable extent in the circumstances."
It is precisely this section that MP Julian is seeking to repeal.
Despite occasional debates over the years, section 43 has remained virtually unchanged since the first version of the Criminal Code in 1892. Only the reference to 'apprentices' and 'primary school teachers' has been removed.
Spanking rebounded in the Supreme Court in 2004 in a lawsuit brought by the Canadian Foundation for Children, Youth and the Law.
By a vote of six to three, the country's highest court ruled that section 43 does not infringe on children's right to security and equality, or their right to be free from "cruel and unusual treatment or punishment."
According to them, spanking is justifiable as long as the child is able to "understand and benefit from the correction", that the force used is "transient and negligible" and that it must not have a detrimental or degrading effect on the child.
