Take action now! Please will you help us by writing to the Welsh Government to support its plans to defend the rights of children?
Wales Humanists has supported proposals made by the Welsh Government which would introduce a total ban on the physical punishment of children in Wales. Responding to a consultation on the proposals, Wales Humanists has stated that ‘the available research makes clear that there is significant risk associated with the use of physical punishment’, and that given the lack of evidence that ‘alternative forms of discipline are any less effective’, there is no justification for allowing such punishment to continue.
Wales Humanists is part of Humanists UK, which forms evidence-based policy on a range of education and children’s rights issues and has a long history of opposing corporal punishment in schools and elsewhere.
The Welsh Government’s proposals aim to end what is known as the ‘defence of reasonable chastisement’, which allows parents, carers, or other responsible adults to smack their children (or inflict equivalent physical punishment) without risking a charge of assault. While this defence has been limited in various ways over the years – the prohibition of corporal punishment in schools, for instance – it is still available to parents, and to adults acting in loco parentis (i.e. on behalf of a parent). The Welsh Government’s proposals would end the defence entirely, removing ‘the current anomaly whereby children have less protection with regard to physical punishment than adults’.
In its response to the consultation, Wales Humanists ‘commends the evidence-based approach that has been taken’ by the Welsh Government, stressing that physical punishment ‘has been shown to increase the odds of mental health problems both during childhood and in later life, and to lead to a range of negative behavioural outcomes including high aggression, lower cognitive ability, and lower self-esteem.’
The response also draws attention to the ‘loud minority of religious groups and parents’ opposing the proposals, urging the Government to be resilient in defending the rights and wellbeing of children in the face of false invocations of parental rights or religious freedom.
Wales Humanists Coordinator Kathy Riddick commented, ‘Humanists have been campaigning against the use of corporal punishment for decades. Former Humanists UK president James Hemming helped lead the campaign for the cane to be abolished in UK schools as far back as the 1940s, and Bertrand Russell’s 1931 essay On Corporal Punishment looked forward to a time when “such barbaric practices will no longer be tolerated.”
‘The Welsh Government’s proposals are ethically robust, well-evidenced, and supported by the overwhelming majority of children’s health and children’s rights experts. We look forward to seeing them implemented in due course.’
We’re encouraging all Humanists UK members and supporters in Wales to write to the Welsh Government supporting the ban. It only takes a moment through the easy-to-use facility on our website.
Notes
For further comment or information please contact Wales Humanists Development Officer Kathy Riddick on kathy@humanists.uk.
Read the Welsh Government’s proposals: https://beta.gov.wales/legislative-proposal-remove-defence-reasonable-punishment
Read the full Wales Humanist response: https://humanists.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018-03-21-FINAL-Response-of-Humanists-UK-to-reasonable-chastisement-consultation.pdf
Read more about Wales Humanists’ work: https://humanists.uk/wales/
Wales Humanists is part of Humanists UK, a national charity registered in England and Wales (no. 285987). We advance free thinking and promote humanism to create a tolerant society where rational thinking and kindness prevail. Our work brings non-religious people together to develop their own views, helping people be happier and more fulfilled in the one life we have. Through our ceremonies, education services, and community and campaigning work, we strive to create a fair and equal society for all.