Proposed Commonwealth ban on child-spanking condemned

18/6/93

Community Development Minister Roger Nicholls today condemned a proposal that the Federal Government should legislate to ban spanking or any other form of physical punishment.

"It would be just another example of the Federal Government going in the wrong direction in family matters," he said.

"Since the Commonwealth took responsibility for Family Law nearly 20 years ago, it has poured infinitely more resources into breaking up families than it has into helping families to grow and develop.

"This sort of legislation will only add to the almost continuous pressures undermining parents' confidence in their ability to be effective parents."

"We ought to be directing all our energy and resources into supporting and educating parents."

Mr Nicholls, whose department is responsible for the care and protection of children, said it was wrong almost to the point of malice to link child abuse and child murder to simple physical discipline.

"It is true that there is a link between children who have been seriously abused and the danger of them repeating the behaviour as adults," he said.

"But to equate this to spanking is like telling parents that if they give their children medicinal drugs, they will grow up to be drug pushers.

"It is a grossly unfair generalised attack on the integrity of most parents.

"Professors and Ministers should know better than to indulge in such exaggeration."

Mr Nicholls said parents would find the best guidelines to physical punishment in their own attitudes while administering it.

"If parents find they are losing control of themselves or that they have even a small desire to hurt the child during punishment, they would be wise to decide not to use physical punishment," he said.

Mr Nicholls added that it was ridiculous to say that we had to legislate against spanking to satisfy the UN.

"That is the ultimate abandonment of responsibility," he said.

"If we abandon responsibility for ourselves at a national level, how can we expect people to exercise personal responsibility at the family level?"

Media contact: Hugh Ryan 221 5377 or 222 9595