• The Committee recommended to DPR Korea that the Government review the legislation to explicitly prohibit all forms of corporal punishment in all settings, “including the home, child-related institutions and all types of penal institutions, including political prison camps”, that it ensure the implementation of the ban in schools and promote positive discipline.
• To Ecuador, the Committee expressed concern at the continued use of corporal punishment to discipline children. It recommended the expedited adoption of the draft Organic Law for a Childhood and Adolescence Free of Physical Punishment and Degrading Treatment, which would prohibit corporal punishment of children in all settings.
• In its concluding observations on Tajikistan’s third/fifth report, the Committee called for the explicit prohibition of corporal punishment in all settings, expressing concern at its continued legality in the home, in alternative and day care settings and in penal institutions.
• The Committee recommended that Vanuatu amend its legislation to explicitly prohibit corporal punishment in all settings, and in particular the Family Protection Act and the Penal Code. It further recommended the proper implementation of the prohibition in schools and the creation of training programmes on positive discipline for parents, teachers and other professionals working with and for children.

To Denmark and the Republic of Moldova, where corporal punishment of children is already prohibited, the Committee recommended the adequate implementation of the prohibition, including through awareness-raising programmes, and the promotion of positive discipline.

For further details, see the Global Initiative’s individual country reports for Denmark, DPR Korea, Ecuador, the Republic of Moldova, Tajikistan and Vanuatu.

For further information on the obligation to prohibit corporal punishment under the Convention on the Rights of the Child and to see the Committee’s recommendations in full, see the Global Initiative’s page on the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

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(1) Child [sic] shall not be subjected to corporal punishment or any other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.

(2) The prohibition referred to in para 1 above shall pertain to parents, guardians and all other persons taking care of or coming into contact with the child.

(3) The persons referred to in para 2 above are obliged to protect the child from any treatment referred to in para 1 above.”

Prior to the legislative reform, corporal punishment was still lawful in the home, alternative care settings and some day care settings.

Montenegro’s prohibition of corporal punishment – together with bans subsequently achieved in Paraguay, Slovenia and Lithuania – brings to 53 the number of states worldwide, and 32 Council of Europe member states, which have prohibited all corporal punishment of children. As a Pathfinder country under the Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children, we hope more states will be inspired to follow Montenegro’s achievement for the fundamental rights of children!

Further information

• Further information on the reform in Montenegro
• Individual country report on law, treaty body recommendations and relevant research in Lithuania
• The latest facts and figures on global progress towards prohibition

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The new law defines corporal punishment as “any punishment in which physical force is used to cause physical pain, even on a small scale, or otherwise to physically torture a child” and explicitly includes it in the definitions of violence against a child and physical violence. Article 4 of the amending Law modified article 10.2 of the Law on the Fundamentals of Protection of the Rights of the Child 1996 to state (unofficial translation):

2. Children have the right to be protected from of all forms of violence, including corporal punishment, by their parents, other legal representatives, persons living with them or other persons.”

The amendments also set out the State’s obligation to take appropriate measures ensuring that children are protected of children from all forms of violence – including corporal punishment – they may suffer at the hands of their parents, guardians, and any other person caring for the child (article 3).

The amending Law must now be signed by the President of the Republic or the Speaker of the Seimas; it will come into force the day after its official inclusion into the Register of Legal Acts.

Prior to legislative reform, corporal punishment of children was lawful in the home, alternative care and some day care settings.

This reform makes Lithuania the 52nd state worldwide to fully prohibit all corporal punishment of children; it is the 31st Council of Europe member state and the 22nd European Union state to do so. This new Law also leaves Russia as the only member of the Council of the Baltic Sea States that has not fully prohibited the violent punishment of children.

Further information

• Further information on the reform in Lithuania
• Individual country report on law, treaty body recommendations and relevant research in Lithuania
• The latest facts and figures on global progress towards prohibition

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Soon after the law was voted, opposition MPs referred it to the Constitutional Council and challenged the constitutionality of several of its provisions. The challenge brought forward by the senateurs (members of the upper house of Parliament) specifically called out article 222 as a cavalier legislatif – they claimed that the amendment which added article 222 to the Equality and Citizenship Bill had no link, even indirect, with the original text of the Bill and was therefore unconstitutional.

The government defended the Law by arguing that the original text contained several provisions related to young people and that by prohibiting all forms of violence against children, article 222 did tie in with the initial Bill. However, the Constitutional Council ultimately agreed with the senateurs’ challenge and found article 222 unconstitutional as having no direct or indirect link with the initial text. The Council’s decision cannot be appealed.

The French Minister for Family had applauded the vote of the article and expressed deep disappointment upon hearing of the Council’s decision, criticising the opposition’s decision to challenge the article as a misguided attempt to preserve the “right” of parents to hit their children.

Le Conseil constitutionnel français censure l’article interdisant les “violences corporelles” contre les enfants

Le 26 janvier 2017, le Conseil constitutionnel français a censuré plusieurs dispositions de la loi Égalité et Citoyenneté adoptée en décembre dernier, dont l’article 222 qui interdisait le recours aux “violences corporelles” contre les enfants.

Peu après le vote de la loi, des parlementaires de l’opposition avaient déféré le texte adopté au Conseil constitutionnel pour contester la constitutionnalité de plusieurs de ses dispositions. La saisine introduite par les sénateurs qualifiait l’article 222 de “cavalier législatif”, c’est-à-dire qu’elle accusait l’amendement ajoutant cet article au projet de loi Égalité et Citoyenneté de n’avoir aucun rapport, même indirect, avec l’objet du projet de loi initial, et d’être par conséquent inconstitutionnel.

Le gouvernement a défendu la loi en avançant que le texte original contenait plusieurs dispositions relatives à la jeunesse, et que l’interdiction de toutes les formes de violence contre les enfants était donc bien en lien avec le projet de loi. Le Conseil constitutionnel a néanmoins donné raison aux sénateurs, déclarant l’article inconstitutionnel en raison de l’absence de lien direct ou indirect avec le texte initial du projet. La décision du Conseil est définitive.

La ministre des Familles, qui avait salué l’adoption de l’amendement, a exprimé sa grande déception à l’annonce de la décision de Conseil. Elle a notamment critiqué le recours de l’opposition contre cet article, le décrivant comme une tentative malavisée de protéger le “droit” des parents à frapper leurs enfants.

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“Parental authority is a cluster of rights and duties whose finality is the interest of the child.

It is vested in the father and mother until the majority or emancipation of the child in order to protect him in his security, health and morality, to ensure his education and allow his development, with all due respect owed to his person and excluding all cruel, degrading or humiliating treatment, including any use of corporal violence.

The parents shall make a child a party to decisions that concern him, according to his age and degree of maturity.”

The Global Initiative welcomes this vote, but notes that the use of the term “corporal violence” is not on its own strong enough to effectively prohibit all corporal punishment of children, however light, in all settings including the home. In fact, violence against children is already an offence under the Penal Code, so without a definition of “corporal violence” it is unclear what impact this new law will have on the legality of corporal punishment.

French judges have previously recognised a “right of correction” to parents and individuals with parental responsibilities and have not before construed corporal punishment as cruel or violent treatment. The expose des motifs – the explanation given by the MP bringing forward the amendment – clearly states that this amendment aims to repeal the “right of correction” defence and to prohibit all forms of violence against children, physical, verbal and psychological. However, the expose des motifs does not have a strong standing in legal terms and is not binding when a judge is interpreting the law.

It is our understanding that once the law is promulgated and published in the Official Journal, a decret d’application – a governmental document which gives interpretative guidance of the law – should include the definition of corporal punishment set out by the Committee on the Rights of the Child, and clarify that this amendment fully prohibits all corporal punishment of children. The decret will not be publicly available until after the promulgation of the law.

The French President has 15 days after a law is voted to promulgate it. However, constitutional challenges have been raised against different provisions of the law including article 68, which will delay promulgation until early February 2017.

Provided that the constitutional challenges do not succeed and that the term “corporal violence” is defined as encompassing all corporal punishment in the decret, France will then become the 52^nd state worldwide and the 22^nd European Union state to achieve complete prohibition of corporal punishment of children.

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On 25 October 2016, the Slovenian National Assembly passed Law No. 542-08/16-9/2.6 Amending and Supplementing the Law on Prevention of Family Violence (ZPND-A). The new law prohibits violence in the family and includes corporal punishment of children in the definition of violence (article 3). Article 4 explicitly prohibits corporal punishment of children, inserting a new article 3a into the existing law, which states (unofficial translation):

(1) Corporal punishment of children is prohibited.

(2) Corporal punishment of children is any physical, cruel or degrading punishment of children or any other act with the intention to punish children, containing elements of physical, psychological or sexual violence or neglect as an educational method.

The new law, which enters into force on the fifteenth day following its publication in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia, also requires funds to be allocated from the national budget for training in the field of violence, particularly violence against children, and to finance positive parenting programmes (article 14).

Prior to this reform, corporal punishment was lawful in the home, alternative care and some day care settings. The Ministry of Labour, Family and Social Affairs has confirmed that while the law relates specifically to family violence, article 3a which prohibits corporal punishment of children is general in its application to all settings, and so prohibition is absolute, including in all alternative care and day care settings.

This reform makes Slovenia the 51st state worldwide to fully prohibit all corporal punishment of children; it is the 30th Council of Europe member state and the 21st European Union state to do so.

Further information

• Further information on the reform in Slovenia
• Individual country report on law, treaty body recommendations and relevant research in Slovenia
• The latest facts and figures on global progress towards prohibition

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This reform makes Paraguay the 10th Latin American state to achieve this fundamental reform for children. Globally, Paraguay is the 50th state to prohibit corporal punishment in all settings, including the home.

Article 1 of the new law confirms the right of the child and adolescent to good treatment and the prohibition of corporal punishment and humiliating treatment (unofficial translation):

All children and adolescents have the right to good treatment and for their physical, psychological and emotional integrity to be respected. This right includes the protection of their image, their identity, their autonomy, their thoughts, their feelings, their dignity and their values.

Corporal punishment and humiliating treatment of children and adolescents is prohibited as a form of correction or discipline, especially when it is imparted by parents, tutors, guardians or anyone responsible for their education, care, guidance, or treatment of any kind.

Children and adolescents are especially entitled to receive guidance, education, care and discipline by implementing guidelines for positive parenting.

The new law puts an emphasis on prevention of corporal punishment and measures to ensure implementation of the law (article 5). It also requires the Ministry of Education and Culture to provide and allocate the necessary means and resources to effectively implement prohibition of corporal punishment in the formal and non-formal education field (article 6) and, together with the Ministry of Public Health and Social Welfare, to establish accessible complaints mechanisms (article 8).

Prior to this reform, corporal punishment was prohibited in shelter homes, in penal institutions and as a sentence for crime in Paraguay, but it was not explicitly prohibited in the home, other alternative care settings, day care and schools.

Further information

• Further information on the reform in Paraguay
• Individual country report on law, treaty body recommendations and relevant research in Paraguay
• The latest facts and figures on global progress towards prohibition

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• Mozambique had already accepted recommendations to prohibit all corporal punishment and has been added to the list of states committed to achieving full prohibition.
• Recommendations to prohibit all corporal punishment of children were accepted by Namibia, Seychelles and Sierra Leone; these are all new commitments and so these states can now be added to the list of states committed to achieving full prohibition. The Government of Seychelles also confirmed that the education law is being revised to include prohibition and consideration will now be given to amending the Children Act.
• Palau accepted recommendations to prohibit corporal punishment in all settings and re-stated its commitment to amending legislation, especially in relation to education.
• Having already accepted a recommendation to prohibit all corporal punishment, Belgium noted another recommendation to prohibit but said it couldn’t be implemented.
• One recommendation to prohibit all corporal punishment was accepted by the Solomon Islands; another was noted. The Government confirmed that the Education Bill would prohibit corporal punishment and said the Child and Family Welfare Bill would address “fair discipline”.
• Recommendations to prohibit all corporal punishment were noted by Somalia and Singapore.
• No recommendations specifically on corporal punishment were made to Niger or Paraguay but general recommendations to harmonise legislation with CRC were accepted by both; in reporting to the Human Rights Council at its 31st session, the Government of Paraguay referred to incorporating the principles of the CRC into law.

Denmark, Estonia and Latvia were also reviewed in the 24th session; all three states have already achieved prohibition of all corporal punishment of children. During the review of Denmark, the Government reported that prohibition was soon to be achieved in Greenland; this has since been achieved.

For further details, see the Global Initiative’s individual country reports: Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Palau, Paraguay, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Somalia.

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The updated review covers the evidence from a major recent analysis of five decades of research on the issue, and includes more than 250 studies which show links between corporal punishment and a wide range of negative outcomes, including direct physical harm, negative impacts on children’s and adults’ physical and mental health, increased aggression, violence and antisocial behaviour, damaged education and damanged family relationships.

Intended for use by advocates for prohibition, the review illuminates how corporal punishment violates not just children’s right to freedom from all violence, but also their rights to health, development and education.

Download the full review (35 pages) (Word/pdf) or a shorter summary (10 pages) (Word/pdf).

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Designed to support action, the report describes how states can work collaboratively towards universal prohibition of violent punishment; it sets out existing regional commitments and action and how to use opportunities at national level to achieve prohibition. Where a total ban has been achieved, the report outlines what is required for states to move from prohibition in law to elimination of all violent punishment of children.

While there is some commendable progress as this report confirms, corporal punishment of children remains legal within the family in almost three quarters of states and also in schools, care institutions and penal systems in many states.

Both the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child consistently address this issue as a human rights violation in their examination of states’ reports. We must hope, even expect, that the added monitoring of the SDGs process will speed universal prohibition ahead of 2030, together with substantial progress towards the elimination of all violent punishment.”

Benyam Dawit Mezmur, Chair, Committee on the Rights of the Child; Chair, African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, in Childhoods free from corporal punishment – prohibiting and eliminating all violent punishment of children. A special progress report prepared for the high-level intergovernmental conference hosted by the Austrian Government in Vienna, June 2016, and marking the 10th anniversary of the UN Study on Violence against Children

The full report is available here.

A limited number of hard copies is available for advocacy purposes; email info@endcorporalpunishment.org.

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