It is generally accepted that hitting an adult is violent assault. So why is hitting a child tolerated? In 165 countries corporal punishment is lawful in the home, and almost 90 countries still have not banned corporal punishment in schools.

The general consensus that smacking a child is ok illustrates the depth of resistance against children’s rights. For more on what corporal punishment means, why it is a human rights issue and what is being done about it, go to the website of the Global Initiative to End All Corporal Punishment of Children.