What you can do

The House of Commons vote to repeal Section 43

TIME IS NOW!

It’s been on the legislative agenda for 30 or more years, and the time has come for Canada to repeal Section 43 of the criminal code, known as the Spanking Law.

Section 43 is a law that instructs Canadian adults how and when they can hit children, and also offers them a defence in law when they do it. To jog your memory, here’s the criminal code section:

Every schoolteacher, parent or person standing in the place of a parent is justified in using force by way of correction toward a pupil or child, as the case may be, who is under his care, if the force does not exceed what is reasonable under the circumstances.”

It’s time to finally protect children from the legal assault mistakenly presented as discipline. We need you and all the members of your network to support MP Peter Julian’s Private Member’s Bill C-273, calling for the repeal of Section 43 of the Criminal Code, by writing to their local Member of Parliament.  We believe that most members of parliament are supportive but need to hear that constituents believe it is an important issue.

To help you in this regard we have attached a suggested letter which members can customize as they wish, or they can draft their own. You will notice that we have also provided a number of different arguments for repeal, to encourage writers to diversify their reasons for urging repeal.

It is important for your members to BCC me in their letters to their MP to enable us to track progress.

(BCC Kathy@Corinnesquest.ca)

Template of email to individuals asking for repeal of s. 43

To: Your MP. To find out who it is, go to https://tinyurl.com/yckzkxzd

Justice Minister Arif Virani – arif.virani@parl.gc.ca BCC:

Subject:  Section 43 of the Criminal Code

I am writing you today to urge all MPs to repeal Section 43 of the Criminal Code of Canada. S. 43 says:

Every schoolteacher, parent or person standing in the place of a parent is justified in using force by way of correction toward a pupil or child, as the case may be, who is under his care, if the force does not exceed what is reasonable under the circumstances.”

MP Peter Julian (New Westminster-Burnaby) tabled Bill C-273 – on the order paper calling for the repeal of Section 43. I’m sure you have received submissions on this subject over the course of your time as an MP, and we believe it is now time for the House to act on this important and easily achievable initiative.

Your principal argument

Scroll down for suggested paragraphs or compose your own. One or two of these paragraphs will suffice.

Please do not use all of them but edit to your liking.

Principal arguments favouring repeal.

We believe that S.43 of the Criminal Code infringes on the civil rights of children.  All residents of Canada deserve to be protected from bodily harm from any source, be that the courts, their teachers and other adult supervisors, their parents and the government itself.  In the year 2023 it is inappropriate for a country with the civil rights record of Canada to still have a law on its books which not only permits and condones violence against children, but also offers protection to those who perpetrate that violence. We urge you to repeal s.43 at your earliest opportunity.

OR

Several years ago, the federal government pledged to enact each of the provisions of the Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC).  Call to Action #6 of that report clearly calls for the repeal of s. 43 and over the past few years Canadians have heard time and time again of the horrors perpetrated on indigenous children in government-mandated so called “residential schools”, by teachers and others whose abuses were protected by s. 43 of Canada’s criminal code.

We are calling for a clear and simple action on the part of the federal government, which I’m sure will receive support from all corners of the House and Senate: repeal s.43 at the earliest opportunity.

OR

Spanking is violence. Intimidation. Fear. It is not discipline. True child discipline teaches children right from wrong from an early age. It instils in them a respect for the rights of others, the laws of our land, and the proper way to conduct one’s self in public, including how to deal non-violently and effectively with conflict. That’s the hard work of parenting. The repeal of s. 43 of the Criminal Code will in fact support the work of many parents who choose to raise their children in a violence-free household. Please support repeal of s.43 at your earliest opportunity.

OR

In the past, various Canadian laws have condoned violence against

Slaves

Servants

Sailors

Prisoners

Apprentices

Wives

Dogs &

Children.

Today, children are the only ones left on this list. Section43 was added to the Criminal Code in 1892.  That’s 131 years ago and much has changed since then. The world’s attitude to gratuitous violence has forced us to forge a totally different path forward, leaving violence behind. Canadians’ current struggles against racism and other forms of hate and bigotry need to inform our attitudes to preserving the basic human rights of children.  We ask that you vote to repeal s.43 as quickly as possible.

OR

In 1989 the United Nations Adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and Canada signed on shortly thereafter.  The convention states, among other things,

States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that the child is protected against all forms of discrimination or punishment on the basis of the status, activities, expressed opinions, or beliefs of the child’s parents, legal guardians, or family members.” 

By maintaining Section43 on the books, Canada is clearly in violation of a treaty it signed, and Canada has been repeatedly reminded of this fact by the UN. This, and other reasons provides Canada with ample reasons to repeal s. 43.

OR

The Canadian Government has a proud history of respect for human rights. In 1972 we abolished the lash in our prisons. in 1976 – 46 years ago now — we abolished the death penalty. Section 43 now stands as the only section of the Criminal Code which actively condones violence. It has become our national embarrassment.  Canada has failed at least twice in recent years in getting a seat on the UN Security Council.  Its non-adherence to one of the UN’s key conventions did not help its cause in that regard. The time is long overdue for Canada to repeal s.43.

OR

Large volumes of peer-reviewed research from Canada, the US, Great Britain and other countries has clearly shown the harms to children which result from physical violence, even from a loving parent. All parents come to realize how much their children learn from their examples in everyday life.  To grow up in a home where the adults resort to spankings or beatings to solved everyday problems cannot fail to teach children that bullying, threatening, fighting and other forms of violence are legitimate ways to achieve results.  We can help end this cycle by repealing s. 43.

OR

Some believe that Section 43 of the Criminal Code will protect teachers from violent students in the classroom. S. 43 does not protect teachers. In 2004 the Supreme Court of Canada specifically removed reference to teachers from this section. Furthermore, BC banned use of the strap in schools in 1973, and most provinces have since followed suit. It is also widely acknowledged that lawlessness and chaos did not result. Teachers are not under threat in the absence of any protection from s. 43.  Because schools are now essentially free from corporal punishment, most teachers would support repeal of s. 43.

OR

Some believe that Section 43 of the Criminal Code will protect teachers from violent students in the classroom. S. 43 does not protect teachers. In 2004 the Supreme Court of Canada specifically removed reference to teachers from this section. Furthermore, BC banned use of the strap in schools in 1973, and most provinces have since followed suit. It is also widely acknowledged that lawlessness and chaos did not result. Teachers are not under threat in the absence of any protection from s. 43.  Because schools are now essentially free from corporal punishment, most teachers would support repeal of s. 43.

Write postage-free, or email your MP. Copy to the Minister of Justice, Arif Virani (arif.virani@parl.gc.ca) and (BCC Kathy@Corinnesquest.ca)