Make corporal punishment of children socially unacceptable

Recently a friend of mine called to inform that his nephew (studying in class three in an English medium school in Dhaka) has been severely beaten by his teacher. I was outraged to know that this has been going on for the last two weeks, and the child has been visibly injured. I informed my friend that there is a circular (2011) by the Ministry of Education banning corporal/physical punishment in educational settings in Bangladesh, and asked if the parents have been to the school to complain. Till that point, they were hesitating to do that, fearing more negative consequences for the child. Later on, they changed their mind and met the headmaster. Apparently he has given assurance that this will not happen again. But who will ensure that?

According to the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey of 2012-2013 (report published by UNICEF and Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics in March, 2015), 82.3 percent children (1-14 years) in Bangladesh experienced psychological aggression or physical punishment during the last one month. In most cases, children get punished by parents, teachers, employers, and caregivers in the name of 'discipline'.

Extreme cases of corporal punishment faced by children in schools and madrasas, children with mental health problems, child domestic workers etc, get reported by the media, but millions of children are suffering each day in silence. It should be noted that there are other non-physical forms of punishment that are cruel and degrading (e.g. punishment which belittles, humiliates, denigrates, scapegoats, threatens, scares or ridicules the child). Are we aware of the real impact of corporal punishment? A 2013 review (conducted by the Global Initiative to End all Corporal Punishment of Children), including more than 150 studies, showed associations between corporal punishment and a wide range of negative outcomes, and presented a convincing case that corporal punishment is harmful for children, adults and societies. This violates children's human dignity and physical integrity and is a blatant violation of children's rights under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which Bangladesh has ratified.

There is overwhelming evidence that corporal punishment causes direct physical harm to children and impacts negatively in the short and long-term on their mental and physical health, education and cognitive development. There are misconceptions among parents, teachers and caregivers in Bangladesh that corporal punishment teaches children how to behave. In reality, this increases anti-social behaviour, damages family relationships, and it is less likely that children learn the lessons adults want them to learn. This also increases aggression in children, and is linked with intimate partner violence and inequitable gender attitudes. Corporal punishment of children increases the likelihood of perpetrating and experiencing violence as an adult. So if we continue to allow corporal punishment of children then it will become impossible to break the culture of violence in our society.

The high level of corporal punishment of children reflects deeply embedded social attitudes that authorise and approve it. We must challenge this, and corporal punishment must be made socially unacceptable. We repeatedly hear that beating by parents and teachers has been going on in our society for long, and this is a common practice.  Some even go on to claim that they would not have been able to be who they are if they were not punished by their parents or teachers! But someone needs to stand up and break the cycle of violence against children. We used to have the culture of burning wives alive with their dead husbands in the Indian sub-continent. Now it is difficult to even comprehend that such a practice ever existed! Nothing can be justified in the name of 'culture' or for the sake of being an old tradition if that hurts human dignity.

We also have to stop giving excuses to justify corporal punishment. For example, it is commonly mentioned that in an over-crowded classroom, teachers need to use corporal punishment to manage the students. Have we ever heard that a teacher is hitting another adult staff in the school because s/he is stressed out? Will that be acceptable? Do we hit our colleagues if we are having a stressful day at our workplace? But don't many of us shout at or hit our children to ventilate our frustrations in life and work? Don't we overlook when a child is being beaten up by a parent in a public place? The idea that breaching a child's human dignity and physical integrity is acceptable or normal reflects children's lower status in society. Children deserve warmth and guidance from us for their growth and holistic development, not punishment.

Some recommendations to end corporal punishment of children:

• Government circular on banning corporal punishment in educational settings must be monitored properly and the teachers violating this should be brought to justice.

                Existing laws that allow corporal punishment must be repealed; this includes The Whipping Act, The Railways Act, The Cantonments Pure Food Act, The Prison Act, The Borstal Schools Act, Penal Code and Code of Criminal Procedure.

• A new law prohibiting corporal punishment in all settings (homes, schools, workplace, institutions including alternative care arrangements etc.) should be enacted.
• Law reforms must be accompanied by long-term awareness-raising and public education in order to ensure knowledge of children's rights among children and adults, including children's equal right to respect for their human dignity and physical integrity, to protection from all forms of violence including all corporal punishment.
• There should be a campaign to make corporal punishment of children socially unacceptable.
• Positive discipline in homes and schools should be promoted. This is about non-violent childrearing and education, and giving parents, teachers and other caregivers a framework for responding constructively to conflicts with the children.The messages on positive discipline should be built into the training of all those who work with or for children and families, in health, education, and social services.

The writer is Director of Child Protection, Save the Children.