THAILANDTHAILANDA study of the relationship between gender and physical punishment in China, Colombia, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, Philippines, Sweden, Thailand and the US, which used interviews with around 4,000 mothers, fathers and children aged 7-10, found that in Thailand 58% of girls and 72% of boys involved in the study had experienced “mild” corporal punishment (spanking, hitting, or slapping with a bare hand; hitting or slapping on the hand, arm, or leg; shaking; or hitting with an object), and 5% of girls and 3% of boys had experienced severe corporal punishment (hitting or slapping the child on the face, head, or ears; beating the child repeatedly with an implement) by someone in their household in the past month. Smaller percentages of parents believed it was necessary to use corporal punishment to bring up their child: for girls, 16% of mothers and 22% of fathers believed it was necessary; for boys, 11% of mothers and 10% of fathers believed it was necessary.
(Lansford, J. et al, 2010, “Corporal Punishment of Children in Nine Countries as a Function of Child Gender and Parent Gender”, International Journal of Pediatrics)
A UNICEF study involving more than 2,300 children in the southern border area of Thailand found that violence, and the anxiety it causes, is an everyday occurrence in their lives, including corporal punishment in homes and schools. Of the 475 children who answered a question about corporal punishment in the home, 38% said they had direct experience of violent punishment like beating with a stick or belt, and 8% said this kind of punishment happens often. 50% of the 1,010 children who answered a question on their opinion on corporal punishment at home disagreed that they deserved violent punishment when they did wrong.
(UNICEF, 2008, Everyday Fears: A study of children’s perceptions of living in the southern border area of Thailand, Bangkok: UNICEF
www.unicef.org/thailand/Everyday_fears.pdf)
In November 2006, the findings of a study funded by the National Health Foundation were released which showed that corporal punishment continues to be used in schools, despite its prohibition. The research constituted a questionnaire sent to 1,300 teachers in primary and high schools across the country. Punishments reported included hitting students with open palms, fists, clothes and blunt objects, kicking, applying heated materials and slapping the face. Up to 60% of the teachers strongly believed that corporal punishment was the right method to use with students.
(Reported in The Nation, 17 November 2006)
The government’s written reply to the list of issues raised by the Committee on the Rights of the Child in 2005 gives the following figures for the percentages of children aged 6-12 and 13-17 experiencing domestic violence in 2003: being yelled at/scolded 45.9% and 51.5% respectively; being cursed with bad words 31.1% and 32.1%; being condemned 6.0% and 8.2%; being compared to an animal 8.3% and 11.8%; being whipped/caned 27.9% and 7.8%; being thrown at with an object 6.6% and 7.2%; having hair pulled 5.0% and 2.2%; being slapped 3.7% and 3.0%; being kicked and punched 2.9% and 2.5%; being trampled on 1.4% and 0.9%; having head knocked against the wall 0.7% and 0.2%; and being burned with a cigarette 0.3% and 0.1%.
(Associate Prof. L. Mohsuwan et al. (2003), reported in Ministry of Social Development and Human Security, Replies to the List of Issues Sent by The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, CRC/C/THA/Q/2/Add.1, 2005)
A survey in 2001 of 9,488 young people aged 1-18 years in 16 provinces, reported by the Thailand Research Fund, found that 45.9% of children were verbally and physically attacked by their parents and elder relatives
(Reported in the Bangkok Post, 1 October 2003, cited in International Save the Children Alliance, 2004, How to research the physical and emotional punishment of children: Resource Handbook, Bangkok, Thailand: International Save the Children Alliance)
International Save the Children Alliance report available at: www.seapa.net/external/resources/resource%20handbook.zip