Physical Punishment"Bad Form Of Discipline

Physical punishment ‘bad form of discipline’

PHYSICALLY punishing a child will not teach him or her discipline, a group warned yesterday. “You’re hurting a child. And the act is not being done once. It just escalates until you inflict serious injuries on the child, or worse, death,” said Carolina Francisco, program coordinator for the Child Rights Programming of the Save the Children Sweden. Corporal punishment harms the child’s health and development, the group said. The Save the Children Sweden said it is a misconception that punishing children teaches them discipline. “(Corporal punishment) does not teach or give (children) guidelines, nor does it help them learn self discipline and take responsibility for their actions. Worse still, the use of corporal punishment perpetuates violence in society. It teaches children that it is acceptable to resolve conflicts by using violence, and to believe that it is justifiable for strong people or groups to use violence against the vulnerable and powerless,” the group said. “Children who are subjected to corporal punishment also end up becoming children who are in conflict with the law,” said SPO 1 Egmedio Bill Felisan Jr. of the Community Scouts Youth Guidance Center of the Cebu City Police Office. Survey For fear of being punished by their parents, children stay out on the streets and learn petty crimes, Felisan said. Corporal punishment is a practice handed down from one generation to another. Because of this, people think a child’s role is to obey the adult, Francisco said. In a study conducted by Save the Children Sweden in 2005, 85 percent of children interviewed in Cebu and Caloocan were reported to have been punished at home and subjected to various forms of corporal punishment. Spanking is reported to be one of the most common forms of punishment on children. Others forms of corporal punishment include direct blows to any part of the child’s body, cutting or piercing the skin of the child, dragging the child, indirectly hurting a child by using power, authority or threats, and confinement. Corporal punishment also includes neglecting a child’s needs such as food and sleep. Verbal assault, cursing and ridicule also falls under corporal punishment. “When the child does something the adult does not like, most likely it will get punished. But children also get punished because parents are in a bad mood, or they are drunk or high,” Francisco said. Instead of physically punishing their children, parents should develop a sound relationship with their children, said Francisco. “You start at the very beginning. Think as a parent, what kind of child do you want to have? Make that as your goal. And start building a good relationship with your child that allows you to talk to your child openly without having to resort to any form of corporal punishment. The child would listen to you if you have a good relationship,” said Francisco. The Central Visayas Cluster on Child Protection and Restorative Justice, along with Save the Children Sweden and Free Lava, Inc. (Free Rehabilitation, Economic, Education and Legal Assistance Volunteers Association, Inc.) yesterday celebrated the global day of action on violence against children in hopes of addressing the pressing problem of corporal punishment. Through an art workshop, children illustrated their calls for banning the use of corporal punishment. “What is important here is that this gets addressed. We do not want the children to wind up on the streets, living in fear and committing crimes,” said Felisan. (EPB)