Overwhelming aversion to corporal punishment for children

Karachi
Children have to be handled most delicately through the first ten years of childhood and parents have to make an effort to really understand their offspring. Corporal punishment and public humiliation of the young ones must be avoided at all costs.
These were the views of many-a-parent at the celebration of the International Fathers’ Day hosted at the Dolmen City mall, Clifton on Sunday. Jointly organised by the Rutgers WPF (World Population Fund) and the Visionary Foundation of Pakistan, the theme for this year’s fathers’ day was: Transforming the role of fatherhood for gender justice: responsible fatherhood.
Parents came with their children amid an affectionate ambience, some carrying their children on their shoulders.
Even though the flow of visitors was rather scanty owing to the fact that all restaurants and eating stalls were shut on account of Ramazan as was also the children’s play area; however, about 200 visitors had come in between 11 am and 3 pm. Children were having their faces painted with slogans exalting their parents; there were also photo sessions.
Opinions on parenthood of those interviewed for a sampling of views varied with the social and educational level of the respondents.
However, the common denominator was the belief that inflicting corporal punishment on children or humiliating them publicly was highly damaging to the personality development of the child and would keep him from being a good performer in life.
This kind of maltreatment of children, they thought, deprived children of confidence for the rest of their lives and would cause them to be timid and slow learners.
Naveed, appearing to be in his forties, was a driver by profession; he believed that as parents it was incumbent on parents to make sacrifices for their children. Unfortunately, life was really so hard in these days of crass capitalism that education, which was imperative to a child’s future, had become highly expensive, not only that but it was also hard to come by.
While the rich capitalists have a field day, the toiling masses whose hard work and labour keep the country going have to writhe in their privations and have to struggle to have their children’s needs met which causes domestic tension which often finds an outlet in the venting of anger at the children which is very damaging to their future, he said.
There were also those who thought celebration of this day was just a farce.
Muhammad Usman Pirani called it a “day of shame”. He said that this may be alright for the Western society where parents and children were so detached from each other and where the family as an institution was fast vanishing.
“We are an Islamic society and for us every day is a fathers’ day as every morning we first and foremost greet our parents and show our love and respect for them as enjoined by our scriptures.
Islam does not call for fixing any particular day for expressing our love for our parents. Every day is fathers’ day. Every day is mothers’ day”.
However, he also fully backed the view that corporal punishment should never be inflicted on children which he added, ran contrary to the edicts of the religion.
Shabnam, a middle-aged married lady, was of the view that many fathers today were distant from their children due to modern pressures of living in times of economic hardship.
However, she said it was incumbent on fathers to be very careful in dealing with their children’s problems and should never, under any circumstances, resort to corporal punishment.
Arifa Bhutto, 22, had the most loving feelings for her father. Talking to this correspondent, she said, “My father is the most important person in my life. He is a very cool and a very great man. He’s not only
my father but my friend and my colleague. He is so very understanding and affectionate”.
Ghufran, a lawyer, who ostensibly was from the more affluent segment of society, was also of the opinion that children should under no circumstances be subjected to corporal punishment.
He was of the view that love for the offspring was rendered absolutely futile if the children’s sentiments and feelings were going to be ridden roughshod that way. There were video visuals from various countries of fathers expressing their love for their offspring.