Opinion: Equal protection for children from ‘justifiable assault’ will help raise responsible citizens
Reading time: 3 minutes
David Faith
In his recent opinion piece, Willie Mcintyre is correct to highlight the poor reporting that we have seen around the consultation on the Children (Equal Protection from Assault) Bill. This bill is not a “smacking bill” and is unlikely to lead to parents going to jail for smacking their children. This is not even the creation of a new law. Instead, the bill seeks to give children equal protection under the law as that enjoyed by adults by removing the defence of “justifiable assault” which can currently be used to justify using physical force on a child.
Children are human beings, they have human rights, including the right to be protected from violence. However, in reality, the members of our society who are the most vulnerable currently enjoy the least protection from physical assault. Why?
Historically, this comes down to what is considered appropriate discipline. It was once commonly accepted that teachers should be allowed to use physical force on the children in their class.
It was felt that smacking was a necessary form of discipline and “the only thing that works”. If your goal is to use fear and intimidation to stop a child from behaving in a certain way in your presence, then using the cane or the belt certainly works.
If you want to educate children about the rights and wrongs of violence, help them to understand the reasons why they shouldn’t behave a certain way and ultimately raise responsible citizens, then physical force is not going to help.
These days we recognise that violence in the classroom is detrimental to a child’s development and a teacher using physical force on a child will, quite rightly, fall foul of the law.
What about at home? Most parents can tell you they have, at one stage or another, wanted to smack their child. Some parents resist that fleeting urge, others will argue they only use smacking in a reasoned and carefully considered manner.
The research on this topic suggests that, in reality, smacking usually occurs when a parent loses their temper and loses control. The research also shows that not only does smacking not work, it is associated with increased childhood aggression, antisocial behaviour, depressive symptoms and anxiety.
In other words, we need to recognise that violence in the home is just as detrimental to a child’s development as violence in the classroom. It’s about time Scotland caught up with the 54 states around the world who already have laws that reflect that reality and give children equal protection from assault.
David Faith
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