Lawfulness of corporal punishment

Home

Corporal punishment is lawful in the home. Under the Juvenile Procedure Code, “[a] parent or guardian having custody of a child is charged with the control of such child and shall have the power to exercise parental control and authority over such child” (article 8).

Children are protected from some violence and abuse under the Child Abuse and Neglect Act (Public Law 1991-207) (1991), the Domestic Relations Act and the Criminal Code. The Criminal Code punishes “[e]very person who shall unlawfully offer or attempt, with force or violence, to strike, beat, wound, or to do bodily harm to another” (article 113).

Schools

Corporal punishment is prohibited in schools by the Rules and Regulations of the Ministry of Education (1992), which define corporal punishment as “hitting, kicking, slapping or any other means of brutal punishment”.

Penal system

Corporal punishment is unlawful as a sentence for crime. The Constitution (1979) prohibits “inhuman and degrading treatment” and “cruel and unusual punishment” (article 6). There is no provision for corporal punishment in the Juvenile Procedure Code. Articles 181-195 of the Criminal Code (“Punishments; judgement and sentencing”) do not include corporal punishment among available sanctions for crime. Under article 181, customs should be taken into account in sentencing.

Corporal punishment is prohibited as a disciplinary measure in penal institutions under the amended Criminal Code. The Criminal Procedure Code and the Juvenile Procedure Code make no provision for corporal punishment.

Alternative care

There is no explicit prohibition of corporal punishment in other institutions and forms of childcare. The provisions against violence and abuse in the Child Abuse and Neglect Act and the Criminal Code apply.

Workplace

No information.

Prevalence research

None identified.

Recommendations by human rights treaty bodies

Committee on the Rights of the Child

“The Committee notes with appreciation the enactment of the following legislation:

d) the amended Criminal Code which prohibits the use of corporal punishment against children as a disciplinary measure in penal institutions.

“While noting that corporal punishment is prohibited in schools by the Rules and Regulations of the Ministry of Education (1992) and that it is unlawful as a disciplinary measure under the revised Penal Code, the Committee is concerned that it is lawful in the family and not formally prohibited in alternative care settings.

“The Committee urges the State party to:

1. explicitly prohibit all forms of corporal punishment in the family, and other institutional settings and alternative care systems as a matter of priority;
2. sensitize and educate parents, guardians and professionals working with and for children by carrying out public educational campaigns about the harmful impact of corporal punishment; promote positive, non-violent forms of discipline as an alternative to corporal punishment, and
3. provide children with child sensitive mechanisms to lodge complaints in case they are victims of violence, including corporal punishment.

“In this respect, the Committee recommends the State party to take into account General Comment No. 8 (2006) on the right of the child to protection from corporal punishment and other cruel or degrading forms of punishment.

“With reference to the UN Study on Violence against Children, the Committee recommends the State party to:

1. take all necessary measures for the implementation of the overarching and setting-specific recommendations contained in the Report of the independent expert of the Un study on Violence against children (A/61/299) while taking into account the outcome and recommendations of the sub-regional Consultations for the Pacific, held in Fiji from 26 until 28 September 2005;
   
   
2. use these recommendations as a tool for action in partnership with civil society and in particular with the involvement of children to ensure that every child is protected from all forms of physical, sexual and mental violence and to gain momentum for concrete and, where appropriate, time-bound actions to prevent and respond to such violence and abuse, and
   
   
3. seek technical assistance from UNICEF, OHCHR, and WHO for the above mentioned purposes.”

(2 February 2007, CRC/C/MHL/CO/2 Unedited Version, Concluding observations on second report, paras. 3 (d), 41, 42 (a, b and c), 43 and 47)

“The Committee is concerned that the use of corporal punishment within the family, schools, other institutions, and generally within society is not expressly prohibited by law.

“In light of articles 19, 28 (2) and 37 of the Convention, the Committee recommends that the State party adopt appropriate legislative measures to prohibit the use of any form of corporal punishment within the family, schools and other institutions. It also encourages the State party to develop measures to raise awareness about the negative effects of corporal punishment and ensure that alternative forms of discipline are administered in families, schools and other institutions in a manner consistent with the child’s dignity and in conformity with the Convention.”
(16 October 2000, CRC/C/15/Add.139, Concluding observations on initial report, paras. 36 and 37)