Czech Republic Scolded for Child Smacking

The Council of Europe declares the country is in violation of a European treaty

Dave Park

Written by Dave Park Published on 18.08.2015 13:57:41 (updated on 18.08.2015) Reading time: 1 minute

The Council of Europe has declared that the Czech Republic is in violation of the European Social Charter because the country has not fully banned corporal punishment, reports Yahoo! News.

Corporal punishment is defined as the disciplinary slapping or spanking of children by their parents or guardians. Belgium was also singled out in a statement that came out earlier this year.

Corporal punishment of children “is not subject to a sufficiently clear, binding and precise ban” in the two countries, the organization said.

The Council, not to be confused with the European Union, is an international organization founded in 1949 and made up of 47 member states, not only in Europe. Among other areas, it focuses on promoting human rights standards within its members.

The Council’s statement comes off the back of a complaint lodged by UK child welfare NGO Approach, which said that seven members were in violation of the Council’s European Social Charter, which was adopted in 1961.

More than half of the Council of Europe’s 47 members – including Germany and Spain – have laws that completely ban corporal punishment.

A complaint against Cyprus was dropped after the country revised its laws, and an investigation into Italy found the country was compliant.

The Czech Republic and Belgium, however, have been found to be in violation of the Charter due to insufficient or unclear laws. 

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