Corporal Punishment: A Worldwide Issue

(Global Perspective- 373 words)

Whether debated about being done at home or at school, corporal punishment has been an international concern for a long time. By this I mean, whether you live in America, Africa, Asia, Australia, or Europe, it has continued to be a huge issue that obviously has not been ignored for a reason. It amazes me that people are still arguing that it is actually okay for kids to be hurt by a belt, cane, or even a shoe, to be disciplined. I have stressed enough about why corporal punishment is wrong, and how it affects children though. I am going to go over corporal punishment around the world, so you can envision how many kids are being disciplined in this cruel way and have no choice but to suffer silently.

Now, an article from CNN, “Corporal punishment policies around the world,” walked me through where corporal punishment stands worldwide today. It stated that Sweden prohibited corporal punishment in 1979, which was the beginning of many other countries doing the same. Later, countries like New Zealand made the decision of banning corporal punishment too. This demonstrates that corporal punishment clearly is not good for a child because countries are not taking the risk. The good news is that now, more than 100 nations have corporal punishment banned in schools, including Afghanistan and Armenia. The bad news is that only 31 nations ban it everywhere, meaning, in schools and homes. Some of these areas include Austria, Germany, and Kenya. This means many nations allow corporal punishment in the home, which should not be acceptable. America sadly stands as one of the countries where physical discipline is lawful in the home, but not in schools.

To sum up, knowing that only 31 nations have corporal punishment expelled in both the home and school is a frightening image. This means that there are countries where hitting a child is perfectly fine as a form of discipline and it is assumed to be good rather than bad. My point is not that this makes certain countries terrible; my point is that so many children are affected by this, which is not acceptable. Children deserve to be heard, and this dispute will by no means end until they are.

"Corporal punishment policies around the world." CNN.com. N.p., 9 Nov. 2011. Web. 26 Nov. 2011. <http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/11/08/country.comparisons.corporal.punishment/index.html>.