In France, 'light violence for educational purposes' is still considered acceptable by many.
As RFI reports, the amendment to the Civil Code provides for 'the exclusion of any cruel, offensive, or degrading treatment' of a child 'including any physical violence.' Although the amendment does not formally entail automatic punishment for its violation, French human rights activists consider its adoption a very important step.
The country 'lacked such a symbolic law limiting the boundaries of parental authority and condemning any violence – physical or moral – against a child,' said Dr. Gilles Lazimi, coordinator of the campaign against domestic violence, in an interview with AFP. And Minister for Family Affairs Laurence Rossignol called the amendment 'a necessary tool for preventing child abuse.'
Lawyers also speak of the amendment's usefulness in cases of convicting parents for violence already committed. The fact is that although the French Criminal Code does provide punishments for child abuse, until now judges, recognizing that the violence was committed for 'pedagogical purposes,' very often release parents from responsibility. With the new amendment to the Civil Code, it will be much more difficult for judges to find legal grounds to justify violence.
'For many centuries in France, it was considered normal that you could beat children,' says Gilles Lazimi. 'From now on, it will be clearly declared that any blow struck against a child is inadmissible violence.'
Bernard Golse, a psychiatrist at the Necker Children's Hospital in Paris, for his part, considers the adopted amendment 'grotesque.' 'How can one distinguish the boundary between violence (already prohibited by law) and a simple educational spank?' asks Professor Golse.
Gilles Lazimi believes that no distinction needs to be made: '85% of parents admit to having used some form of violence against their children (spanks, 'light slaps', 'ear pulling') before they were five years old,' says Lazimi. 'For a child who cannot defend himself, this is a great stress,' asserts Olivier Morel, president of the Monitoring Center for 'violence for educational purposes.'
'We need to make parents understand that you can have authority with children without resorting to physical punishment,' says Lazimi. And he reminds that in France, where 'light violence for educational purposes' is still considered acceptable, between 400 and 600 children die each year from abuse. 'In Sweden, where all violence is prohibited, these cases can be counted on the fingers of one hand,' says the human rights activist.
Many French parents remain reactionaries in this regard. As Le Figaro reminds, in 2015 the Council of Europe condemned France, which, unlike many European countries, still has not unconditionally and directly banned 'any violence against a child.'
However, the amendment to the Civil Code adopted by parliament on July 2 still has to be approved by the French Senate.