Reintroducing corporal punishment breaches children’s rights, SEEP warns

The Social Empowerment and Education Programme (SEEP) has condemned public calls to reintroduce corporal punishment in Fiji, warning that such proposals threaten to undo years of progress in protecting children’s rights and dignity.

SEEP Executive Director and Human Rights Commissioner Chantelle Khan said the move would directly contradict Fiji’s national laws and international human rights commitments.

“Corporal punishment is not discipline, it is violence. We cannot teach respect through fear, nor promote learning through pain,” Ms Khan said.

She said Fiji’s Constitution protects every child from cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment, and the country’s ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) obliges the State to safeguard children from all forms of physical or mental violence.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 1.2 billion children globally experience corporal punishment each year, with studies showing no positive outcomes.

Ms Khan said the practice is linked to aggression, anxiety, depression, and poorer educational performance.

“Locally, Fiji’s 2021 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) revealed that 81 percent of children face violent discipline at home. The more recent 2024–2025 MICS Plus found 68 percent of children aged 1–14 still experience violent or psychological punishment, a clear sign that harmful norms persist,” she said.

Ms Khan said legitimising corporal punishment would only deepen the harm and damage relationships between adults and children.

“Reintroducing such practices violates children’s rights and erodes trust between caregivers, teachers, and the young people they nurture,” she said.

SEEP is urging leaders, educators, and communities to reaffirm Fiji’s commitment to non-violent, rights-based discipline, and to strengthen public education and parenting programmes that promote empathy, communication, and mutual respect.

“Our children deserve safety, dignity, and care. Let us move forward, not backward, in protecting their rights,” Ms Khan said.