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Summary: Presentation by Shirley Mabusela, UNESCO
Study on Corporal Punishment,
Johannesburg, July 19 2005.WE MUST PROTECT OUR CHILDREN FROM ALL FORMS OF VIOLENCE
South Africa is proof of the fact that conflict resolution through
communication works! This country negotiated a deal that brought about
democracy to this country that was in the throes of serious conflict and low
intensity warfare. It is my point of departure therefore to say we can find
the elusive solution to the situation of handling differences with children in
an amicable non-violent way.
The country has demonstrated its commitment to democratize all walks of
life by adopting values of human dignity, equality and freedoms and
entrenching these in the Constitution. The state then affirmed this
commitment by enjoining itself to respect, protect, promote and fulfill these
rights and others in the Bill of Rights, which is a cornerstone of South
Africa’s democracy.
The nature of the modern world is global. South Africa is part of the
community of nations and has acceded to regional as well as international
instruments/covenants/declarations of human rights. These rights are
applicable to children to the extent that they are applicable, based on
children’s evolving maturity.
At national level, South Africa has adopted progressive laws and policies.
Specific laws and policies to this ESARO consultation have to do with the
prohibition of corporal punishment in state and private institutions. This
prohibition has been confirmed by the Constitutional Court of South Africa
which declared corporal punishment in institutions unconstitutional.
However, there is still a need to expand this prohibition to the families who
have been excluded in the rulings made so far. The questions are why is it
so? And does the law prohibiting Family Violence adequately protect
children from corporal punishment?
While promulgating appropriate laws and policies is the first step towards
dealing with corporal punishment is important, these on their own do not
solve the problem. A good example is the work done by the Department of
Education to prohibit corporal punishment in schools. It also proposed
alternatives to corporal punishment which were enriched and further
expanded upon by the Wits University Education Policy Unit and other
institutions. However…..Some learners in this country have died, they have
paid the ultimate price, due to some teachers opting to resort to this form
of punishment/chastisement.
Some of the horrible examples that have lead to children losing their lives
to this form of punishment and inappropriate alternatives are cited below.
1. In order to “maintain discipline in the classroom”, a SOWETO teacher
refused to grant permission to a 14 year old learner to go to the toilet
when he needed to go. The learner ended up embarrassingly messing
himself up in front of all other learners. As though this was not enough, he
was sent home to clean himself up! The result is that the learned
committed suicide when he got home.
2. In another instance, a learner who did not submit homework was locked
in the classroom for the night by a teacher as a form of punishment. The
learner has since dropped out of school due to the fear of having to be left
all alone at school for the night.
We are challenged by a number of issues when dealing with the question
of corporal punishment.
Firstly, there needs to be a commitment to address this as a form of
violence and for adults to stop justifying its use as a God given right. No
one has the right to hurt another, and children are not exceptions to this
rule. The State must promulgate laws and develop policies to deal with this
form of violence and the citizens must respect these laws and
appropriately apply them.
Secondly, there must be an acceptance that corporal punishment is
violence against children, nothing less, and that it must be seen as a
violation of children’s rights to human dignity and security.
Thirdly, that society must find ways to help adults unlearn this form of
punishment which many have internalized to the point of being blinded to
other constructive ways of dealing with children who need to be guided.
Fourthly, the need to accept that spaces must be negotiated and created
to communicate whenever there is conflict of interest either in the home, at
schools and in institutions at an early age so that children grow up as
communicators rather than resorting to violence when there is conflict. This
needs to take children’s evolving maturity into account.
Fifthly, intergenerational conversations need to be promoted in order to
explore ways that engage all concerned to find solution to this contested
space which many adults have nationalized as their own.
Lastly, Explore ways in which adults who interface with children deal with
frustration, anger, conflict and non-compliance.
On the basis of the above, I urge this consultation to adopt the guiding
principles of the UNESCO report and adopt recommendations to end
legalized violence against children. Thank you.
Owner: Shirley Mabusela, UNESCO