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Ending Corporal Punishment of Children – a Handbook

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Ending Corporal Punishment of Children – a Handbook ENDING CORPORAL Ending corporal punishment of children – A handbook for working with and within religious communities A handbook for working with and within religious – punishment of children Ending corporal PUNISHMENT OF CHILDREN A handbook for working with and within religious communities CNNV Churches’ Network for Non-violence ENDING CORPORAL PUNISHMENT OF CHILDREN ❧ ❧ ❧ A handbook for working with and within religious communities Contents 1 Introduction .......................................................................................................1 a) The links between religion and corporal punishment of children ............................1 b) About the handbook ................................................................................................5 2 Corporal punishment of children – a global problem ......................................9 a) The prevalence of corporal punishment ..................................................................9 b) The impact of corporal punishment .......................................................................12 c) Children’s perspectives .......................................................................................... 14 d) The importance of legal reform ..............................................................................16 e) Progress towards prohibition worldwide ............................................................... 17 3 Children’s right to protection from corporal punishment .............................. 19 a) The Convention on the Rights of the Child ............................................................19 b) Other international and regional human rights treaties ..........................................24 c) The UN Secretary-General’s Study on Violence against Children .........................25 4 Religious perspectives ....................................................................................27 a) Faith-based opposition to legal reform ..................................................................27 First edition published May 2011 by: b) Responding to faith-based opposition ..................................................................34 Churches’ Network for Non-violence www.churchesfornon-violence.org c) Faith-based support for prohibiting and eliminating corporal punishment ............37 Global Initiative to End All Corporal Punishment of Children www.endcorporalpunishment.org Save the Children Sweden http://resourcecentre.savethechildren.se d) Understanding shared values ................................................................................41 e) Building on shared values to support prohibiting and eliminating corporal Acknowledgements punishment .................................................................................................................46 Photographs and illustrations: Save the Children (front cover, p. 32); Anders Jared (pp. 1, 41); Mats Lignell/Save the Children (pp. 2, 59); Visión Solidaria, Peru (p. 9); Katja Grandinsson (p. 12); Children 5 Working with faith groups to achieve reform ................................................. 51 Are Unbeatable! , UK (p. 14); World Vision (pp. 14, 55); Fundación Paniamor, Costa Rica (p. 19); Unicef a) The importance of involving religious leaders and their communities ...................51 Bhutan (p. 23); Scarboro Missions (p. 48); Plan West Africa (p. 55); Kirklees Council, UK (p. 58); Hinduism Today (p. 62), Marcello Valle (p. 25). b) Engaging with faith-based groups .........................................................................52 c) Developing multi-religious support ........................................................................53 Values underpinning Te Kahui Mana Ririki strategic plan (p. 65) reproduced by permission of the Venerable Hone Kaa, Te Kahui Mana Ririki project Papaki Kore: No more smacking for d) Facilitating children’s participation .........................................................................54 Māori, New Zealand 2008 e) Forming key partnerships ......................................................................................56 Advice and quotations from religious texts from Jay Lakhani, Dr Ghayasuddin Siddiqui, The Venerable Galayaye Piyadassi 6 Taking action through religious leaders’ existing roles and functions .........61 a) … as pastors and spiritual leaders ........................................................................61 Text by Chris Dodd Edited by Sharon Owen b) … as leaders of faith-based organisations ............................................................64 Technical support by Mali Nilsson, Save the Children Sweden c) … as teachers and scholars .................................................................................66 Design by Simon Scott Printed in the UK by The Russell Press Limited, Nottingham d) … as preachers and leaders of worship ................................................................69 e) … as community leaders and activists ..................................................................70 The Global Initiative to End All Corporal Punishment of Children is administered by the Association for the Protection of All Children, APPROACH Ltd, a registered charity No. 328132. 7 Resources ........................................................................................................ 73 Registered office 94 White Lion Street, LONDON N1 9PF, UK. Foreword eligious leaders and their communities, through their extensive networks and organisations at the local, regional, national and international level, command an extraordinary moral authority and influence towards ending all violence against children. With strong resolve, leadership and example, they can demonstrate deep respect for children’s dignity and rights, Rprotect the sanctity of life in every stage of a child’s development, and serve as role models of compassion, equality and non-violence. It is therefore crucial that religious leaders and communities be part of the solution to eliminate all violence against children, including through the promotion of law reform. Achieving the prohibition of all forms of violence against children, including corporal punishment, in all settings of children’s lives, was a key recommendation of the UN Secretary-General’s Study on Violence against Children and it remains a crucial priority for my mandate as the Secretary-General’s Special Representative. Religious leaders and their communities have a unique moral authority and capacity to speak out and influence social change by raising awareness about the impact of violence on children, by rejecting harmful and violent forms of punishment, and by promoting non-violent discipline and education. They also have an influential voice in emphasising that violence against children, whether or not disguised as discipline, cannot be justified or condoned through culture, tradition or faith. In spite of progress achieved, violent punishment of children remains pervasive, lawful and socially approved in many nations. It continues to cause widespread pain and suffering to children. It is urgent to build on the collective strengths of religious communities and promote multi-religious alliances with other organisations to move towards the prohibition and elimination of all forms of violence against children, including corporal punishment. This handbook provides invaluable tools, examples of successful and imaginative advocacy and links to resources for working with and within religious communities. I am confident it will accelerate progress in all regions. Marta Santos Pais UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children May 2011 “… millions of the world’s children still suffer from humiliating acts of violence and these violations of their rights as human beings can have serious lifelong effects. Violence begets violence and we shall reap a whirlwind. Children can be disciplined without violence that instils fear and misery, and I look forward to church communities working with other organisations to use the context of the Study to make progress towards ending all forms of violence against children. “If we really want a peaceful and compassionate world, we need to build communities of trust where all children are respected, where home and school are safe places to be and where discipline is taught by example. May God give us grace to love our children as He loves them and may their trust in us lead them to trust in Him.” (Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, in Global Initiative to End All Corporal Punishment of Children, 2006, Ending Legalised Violence against Children: Global Report 2006, www.endcorporalpunishment.org/pages/pdfs/reports/GlobalReport.pdf) Introduction 1 “No violence against children is justifiable; all violence against children is preventable.” Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro, the Independent Expert for the United Nations Secretary-General’s Study on Violence against Children, 20061 a) The links between religion and corporal punishment of children Corporal punishment of children occurs globally and in all societies. It takes place in many settings including the home, in schools and institutions, care systems such as foster and day care, and on the streets. In some countries children and young people can still be legally whipped or beaten as punishment for an offence. Children in situations such as forced or bonded labour, domestic labour, or those being abused in prostitution and trafficking are also at risk. The mistaken belief that corporal
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