Publication: Corporal Punishment in Nepalese School Children: Facts, Legalities and Implications
Date
2010
Article Type
Review Article
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
ISSN 1990-7974 eISSN 1990-7982
Volume Title
Pages
Pages: 98 - 109
Publisher
Nepal Paediatric Society (JNPS)
Abstract
Abstract:
While the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) demands that children be respected as human beings with the right to dignity and physical integrity, in Nepal corporal punishment is often considered necessary to children’s upbringing, to facilitate learning and to instill discipline in the children. The existence of this cruel practice towards children is attributed to the weak national policy, unhealthy academic competition among the schools, poorly trained teachers, superstitious traditional beliefs and hierarchical social structure. Consequently, the children are doomed to suffer this practice resulting in negative physical, mental and social welfare. Besides corporal punishment, sexual abuse in school going children seems to be frequent but mostly unreported. This is high time we eliminated this violence against children in schools and it calls for holistic approach. For this, it is necessary to pursue a set code of conduct and raise awareness among the teachers for the child rights in order to stop undignified, inhuman and undisciplined tradition. The awareness and capacity of the health professionals to deal with complexities of the child abuse also needs to be promoted. Furthermore, the need of improvements in the national laws and their proper implementation is a longstanding challenge for the governmental and nongovernmental organizations.
Description
Navin Mishra
Assistant Professor, Department of Paediatrics, KIST Medical College, Imadol, Lalitpur
Kashi Kant Thakur
Project Officer, Environmental and Public Health Organisation, New Baneshwor
Rabin Koirala
Associate Professor, Department of Surgery, KIST Medical College, Imadol, Lalitpur
Devendra Shrestha
Assistant Professor, Department of Paediatrics, KIST Medical College, Imadol
Rakesh Poudel
Assistant Professor, Department of Paediatrics, KIST Medical College, Imadol
Rajanee Jha
Medical Officer, Paropakar Maternity Hospital, Kathmandu
Keywords
child abuse, child rights, corporal punishment, psychological
Identifier
https://doi.org/10.3126/jnps.v30i2.2929