Smacking Children Breaches Their Human Rights: Report

Calls for Australia to come into line with countries that have banned smacking

Australia’s failure to outlaw the smacking of children is a violation of their human rights, according to a team of legal scholars and psychologists who, themselves, need a good old fashioned smack down.

The researchers, quoted in an ABC report this week, described smacking as “disciplinary violence against children”.

Er, no.

Discipline and violence are two very different things.

Only a group of academics seeking to make media headlines could equate the two things as the same.

Obviously smacking could cross the line into violence. But hey, time out could cross the line into imprisonment!

And if we’re going to play that game, couldn’t reasoning with a child cross the line into bullying and manipulation?

Of course it could. It all depends upon the how it is done and the motivation from which it is coming.

According to the researchers …

“Australia's failure to abolish disciplinary violence against children has prompted severe rebukes from the international community”.

Whoa. I’m so scared!

From now on I won’t discipline my children without first asking: ‘What would the international community think about this?’

As an aside, who are the international community? Who are these globalists who take such interest in the way I raise my children?

Of course, according to Joe Biden there’s no such thing as “my children”.

He recently told a teacher’s conference:

“There’s no such thing as someone else's child. Our nation’s children are all our children.”

What the US President wouldn’t like more than a line of our nation’s children assembled for him to sniff. But I digress.

Co-author of the smacking is violence paper and Queensland University of Technology clinical psychologist Divna Haslam told the ABC:

"It is illegal to assault, physically hit, strike, smack an adult — but if it's a child who is under 18, one who who cannot protect themselves, somehow it's legal.

Imagine her surprise when Dr Haslam discovers it is illegal to force someone into time out, but if it’s a child who is under 18, somehow it’s legal!

Oh, the scandal.

The doctor said there was no evidence that “hitting” children improved their behaviour.

Well if a child is “hit”, then I suspect that could very well be detrimental.

But sensible parents understand there’s a difference between “hitting” and “smacking”, just as there’s a difference between papers on parenting and parenting.

If you asked my sons if they were “hit” as children, they would say no. If you asked if they were smacked, they would say yes.

Even kids know the difference. And I’m certain my now 18-year-old boys would say the occasional smack most certainly improved their behaviour; as I would say my parents’ discipline improved me.

Dr Haslam’s paper cited research that found 61 per cent of people aged between 16 to 24 years old reported having experienced corporal punishment four or more times in childhood. 

Can I just say, my mum (with the help of her wooden spoon) was a massive over achiever. Or maybe I was just especially naughty. Four or more times in childhood? You’re joking, aren’t you. In my case it was four or more times a week!

The doctor said Australia should ban smacking “to come in line with 65 other countries” where smacking is banned.

Why?

Should we legalise female genital mutilation to come into line with 22 countries where FGM is legal?

This ‘everyone else is doing it so we must also do it’ argument is nonsensical.

As my mum used to say, right before she smacked me, “If every other nation jumped off a cliff, would we?”

Good parents should not be criminalised because academics don’t know the difference between discipline and violence.

Nor should the “international community” usurp parental rights and responsibilities.

Where does the international community (whoever they are) get off telling me how to raise my children? Have you seen the leader of the free world’s son?

Now, of course, people will have different views on smacking, which is fine. People have the right and the responsibility to raise their children as they see fit.

Only in very serious circumstances, such as abuse, should the State become involved.

Good parents never hit their children in frustration. They may, however, smack them in love.

Good parents never do violence to their children in anger. They may discipline them with a smack for their own good.

And, if parents do their job right, they will have saved the State from having to become involved with unruly teenagers, or worse, with recalcitrant adults.