Measure against corporal punishment under review

A proposed Cebu City ordinance seeks to prohibit corporal punishment of minors.

Violators face 6 months in jail and a  P5,000 fine. The measure is pending review by the City Council’s committee on law.

This covers  physical violence such as beatings with or without instruments, pinching or  pulling and shaving a child’s hair or ears.

Also prohibited are solitary confinement, exposure to harmful substances, neglect, verbal threats and other cruel and unusual punishments aimed at humiliating the child.

This measure would require parents, guardians or any person with custody of a child to undergo a seminar on positive discipline of children as a prerequisite for a child’s enrollment in day care centers

The draft ordinance is based on  Republic Act 7610 or the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act and the United Nations Convention on the rights of the child.

Interventions include psychological intervention, anger management, counseling and protective custody.

The measure is authored by Councilors Leah Japson, Margot Osmeña, Alvin Dizon and John Philip Po II. /Correspondent Edison delos Angeles