• To prohibit slapping; caning

A gazette on the criminalising of corporal punishment will be introduced tomorrow (18) in order to prevent the abuse of, and cruel punishments meted out to children.

“We will be introducing a gazette on the prohibition of corporal punishment as a disciplinary method for children on 18 September,” the Secretary of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), Nihal Ranasinghe told The Daily Morning yesterday (16). “This will criminalise common punishments like slapping and canning children.”

This move follows a Cabinet of Ministers decision to amend the Penal Code which includes provisions for physical punishment in all sectors. Currently, Section 341 of the Penal Code makes exceptions for a schoolmaster using corporal punishment on his/her pupil while Section 82 makes exceptions for “an act done in good faith for the benefit of a child or a person of unsound mind, by or by consent of the guardian”. However, despite its legal acceptance, corporal punishment has been considered a violation of human rights under Article 19 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which prohibits any form of violence towards children.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), approximately 60% of children from the ages 2-14 suffer from corporal punishment globally at the hands of their parents or caregivers. The WHO notes that children who have experienced corporal punishment are at risk of damage to their mental health including an increased risk of anxiety, depression, self-harm and suicide. Children who experience corporal punishment also exhibit poor academic performance, antisocial and aggressive behaviours and impaired cognitive and socio-emotional development. 

In August, the National Child Protection Authority confirmed that most complaints are from children complaining of corporal punishment at the hands of their parents.