SASKATOON (Staff) – Parents who spank their children are not child abusers, says a Reform MP who has taken exception to a federal review of the law that allows such punishment.
“I believe parents should be able to discipline their children in a loving, caring manner,” said Garry Breitkreuz, Saskatchewan MP for the Yorkton-Melville riding.
The father of four said he had spanked his own children even though “it’s torn my heart out at times” to do it. He contends children appreciate such discipline if it’s not done in anger and if it’s used as part of a stated and progressive warning and punishment system.
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Federal justice minister Allan Rock confirmed in the House of Commons this summer that his department is reviewing the law allowing parents to use reasonable physical force to correct their children’s behavior.
Support for position
Breitkreuz is a member of the Reform Party’s task force on the family. Since he raised the issue of parents’ right to spank in June, he has received “a lot of positive comment” and phone calls from across the country, all in support of his position, he said.
The Reform MP said firmness is better than screaming and yelling at children, which he characterized as verbal abuse.
Breitkreuz also said the government is conducting more than an internal review of the law permitting parents to spank; it is also funding groups opposed to spanking, which consider the action akin to child abuse.
In March, the Toronto Star reported 70 percent of Canadian parents polled said they believe it is sometimes necessary for parents to use physical discipline.
Breitkreuz said: “If the minister isn’t considering changes to Section 43 (of the Criminal Code) and 70 percent of parents support the current law, then why is his department spending time and taxpayers’ money reviewing it?”
