Online Reporter
Zvamaida Murwira-Senior Reporter
THE use of corporal punishment among learners remains banned in terms of the Education Act as that is consistent with global trends which recognise rights of children against degrading treatment.
Primary and Secondary Education Deputy Minister Angeline Gata said instilling discipline among children was everyone’s responsibility, including the whole community.
Deputy Minister Gata said this in the Senate on Thursday during the Question and Answer session.
Senators had asked if the Government was considering reviewing the ban on corporal punishment, saying even in the bible, scriptures said “spare the rod and spoil the child.” Meaning corporal punishment was a useful tool to instil discipline.
In response, Deputy Minister Gata said it was critical that the Constitution equally conferred rights on children.
“I hear you and that is the way we were all raised, but the children have rights. We are trying to align our goals with the worldwide goals of the child protection services because corporal punishment, in other instances, was being overly done and therefore harming the child.
“We have not left them alone. What we are doing is to embark on positive discipline. This involves guidance and counselling. It involves community engagement and it involves rehabilitation programmes. Serious issues as this one can result in expulsion or suspension from school and then being sent for rehabilitation. The corporal punishment, yes, culturally you might say a rod is better, but then we come to their rights, we are trying to balance it. So, positive discipline is the way to go,” said Deputy Minister Gata.
The Education Act, promulgated in 2020, compelled schools to have a disciplinary policy for pupils, which effectively bans corporal punishment by prohibiting cruel and degrading forms of discipline.
This legislation built on a previous 2017 High Court ruling that declared corporal punishment unconstitutional and also on a 2019 government announcement to remove corporal punishment from schools.
This deputy minister said nothing and knows nothing. She was appointed by the president who emphatically emphasized on firm disciplining of children, including the use of corporal punishment. She cannot create non existing rights for our children. We are killing whole generations by trying to follow stupid things being done elsewhere. Today we sit with insurmountable problems of acute juvenile delinquency because of this copycat business. I challenge this deputy minister to throw the issue of corporal punishment to a national referendum. After all these are our children, not hers and when we grapple with problems, she will not be there. We are tired of people who simply parrot foreign ideology without getting into details. Dr Auxilia Mnangagwa is busy cleaning up the mess people like this deputy minister are advocating for creating by establishing many drugs rehabilitation centres.