Southern Alberta Council on Public Affairs (SACPA)

Canada's spanking laws may be heading for an overhaul as part of the government's promise to adopt all of the recommendations stemming from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. One of the 94 "calls to action" after the six-year inquiry into widespread abuse at residential schools for indigenous children is to repeal section 43 of the Criminal Code. The Canadian Law, under section 43 of the Criminal Code, offers Canadian parents and caregivers a defence to use reasonable force to discipline a child. However, as section 43 recognizes, this is controversial and not in fact, of the rights and best interest of the children in our country. The United Nations committee on the rights of the child addressed Canada on September 19, 2012 during their ten-year goal review; “What we are telling you is, to raise the bar and rise to the challenge, because Canada is one of the top five economies in the world.” Multiple researchers and a longitude of studies support that physical discipline has short and long term negat