Can a spanking be justified?

Can a spanking be justified?

I recently read in the press that according to a study by the University of Fribourg, one child in ten is still regularly punished by slapping. It also mentions that many children are punished by being put under cold water by their parents. Child protection associations are apparently still calling for political action, but isn't corporal punishment already banned in Switzerland, or have I missed an episode?

S. Bulle

The question of an express ban on corporal punishment in Swiss law has been raised many times in recent years, with several members of parliament tabling motions calling for the legislature to take action in this direction. Until recently, however, the Federal Council had always expressed the view that a topical article in the law was unnecessary, as violence in child-rearing is in no way permitted under current Swiss law, even in the absence of a specific legal provision.

Under the Swiss Constitution, children's right to special protection of their integrity is guaranteed. More specifically, the right to use the "means of correction necessary for the upbringing of children" was abolished almost half a century ago with the 1978 revision of the Civil Code.

Respect for the child's personality, from which stems the duty of parents and other carers to refrain from corporal punishment, is enshrined as a guiding principle in a number of civil law provisions. When a report of violence against a child is received by the child protection authorities, they are obliged to initiate proceedings. The obligations of certain professionals to report suspected child abuse have been regularly extended.

Swiss criminal law also applies, setting various limits on violence against children, including in education. In particular, slapping or spanking may constitute assault, an offence under article 126 of the Criminal Code, which is only punishable on complaint.

Children's organisations insist that enshrining the principle of violence-free education in law has positive effects, including changes in parental behaviour and reduced tolerance of violence. In the summer of 2023, the Federal Council proposed expressly enshrining the principle of non-violent upbringing in the Civil Code.