Corporal punishment or physical punishment
is a punishment intended to cause physical
pain on a person.
It is most often practised on minors, especially
in home and school settings.
Common methods include spanking or paddling.
It has also historically been used on adults,
particularly on prisoners and enslaved people.
Other common methods include flagellation
and caning.
Official punishment for crime by inflicting
pain or injury, including flogging, branding
and even mutilation, was practised in most
civilizations since ancient times.
However, with the growth of humanitarian ideals
since the Enlightenment, such punishments
were increasingly viewed as inhumane.
By the late 20th century, corporal punishment
had been eliminated from the legal systems
of most developed countries.The legality in
the 21st century of corporal punishment in
various settings differs by jurisdiction.
Internationally, the late 20th century and
early 21st century saw the application of
human rights law to the question of corporal
punishment in a number of contexts:
Corporal punishment in the home, punishment
of children or teenagers by parents or other
adult guardians, is legal in most of the world.
58 countries, most of them in Europe and Latin
America, have banned the practice as of 2018.
School corporal punishment, of students by
teachers or school administrators, has been
banned in many countries, including Canada,
Kenya, South Africa, New Zealand and all of
Europe.
It remains legal, if increasingly less common,
in some states of the United States.
Judicial corporal punishment, as part of a
criminal sentence ordered by a court of law,
has long disappeared from European countries.
However, as of November 2017, it remains lawful
in parts of Africa, Asia, the Anglophone Caribbean
and indigenous communities of Ecuador and
Colombia.
Closely related is prison corporal punishment
or disciplinary corporal punishment, ordered
by prison authorities or carried out directly
by staff.
Corporal punishment is also allowed in some
military settings in a few jurisdictions.Other
uses of corporal punishment have existed,
for instance, as once practised on apprentices
by their masters.
In many Western countries, medical and human-rights
organizations oppose corporal punishment of
children.
Campaigns against corporal punishment have
aimed to bring about legal reform to ban the
use of corporal punishment against minors
in homes and schools.
== History ==
=== 
Prehistory ===
Author Jared Diamond writes that hunter-gatherer
societies have tended to use little corporal
punishment whereas agricultural and industrial
societies tend to use progressively more of
it.
Diamond suggests this may be because hunter-gatherers
tend to have few valuable physical possessions,
and misbehavior of the child would not cause
harm to others' property.Researchers living
among the Parakanã and Ju/’hoansi people,
as well as among some Aboriginal Australians,
have written of the absence of physical punishment
of children in those cultures.Wilson writes:
Probably the only generalization that can
be made about the use of physical punishment
among primitive tribes is that there was no
common procedure [...] Pettit concludes that
among primitive societies corporal punishment
is rare, not because of the innate kindliness
of these people but because it is contrary
to developing the type of individual personality
they set up as their ideal [...] An important
point to be made here is that we cannot state
that physical punishment as a motivational
or corrective device is 'innate' to man.
=== Antiquity ===
Corporal punishment of children has traditionally
been used in the Western world by adults in
authority roles.
Beating one's child as a punishment was recommended
as early as the c. 10th century BC book of
Proverbs attributed to Solomon:
He that spareth the rod, hateth his son; but
he that loveth him, chasteneth him betimes.
(Proverbs, XIII, 24)
A fool's lips enter into contention, and his
mouth calleth for strokes.
(Proverbs, XVIII, 6)
Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let
not thy soul spare for his crying.
(Proverbs, XIX, 18)
Judgements are prepared for scorners, and
stripes for the backs of fools.
(Proverbs, XIX, 29)
Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child;
but the rod of correction shall drive it from
him.
(Proverbs, XXII, 15)
Withhold not correction from the child; for
if thou beatest him with a rod, thou shalt
deliver his soul from hell.
(Proverbs, XXIII, 13–14)
A whip for a horse, a bridle for an ass, and
a rod for a fool's back.
(Proverbs, XXIX, 15)
Robert McCole Wilson argues, "Probably this
attitude comes, at least in part, from the
desire in the patriarchal society for the
elder to maintain his authority, where that
authority was the main agent for social stability.
But these are the words that not only justified
the use of physical punishment on children
for over a thousand years in Christian communities,
but ordered it to be used.
The words were accepted with but few exceptions;
it is only in the last two hundred years that
there has been a growing body of opinion that
differed.
Curiously, the gentleness of Christ towards
children (Mark, X) was usually ignored".
Corporal punishment was used in Egypt, China,
Greece, and Rome for both judicial and educational
discipline.
Disfigured Egyptian criminals were exiled
to the Sinai border at Tjaru and Rhinocorura,
whose own name meant "cut-off noses".
China also disfigured some criminals and tattooed
others.
Some states gained a reputation for using
such punishments cruelly; Sparta, in particular,
used them as part of a disciplinary regime
designed to build willpower and physical strength.
Although the Spartan example was extreme,
corporal punishment was possibly the most
frequent type of punishment.
In the Roman Empire, the maximum penalty that
a Roman citizen could receive under the law
was 40 "lashes" or "strokes" with a whip applied
to the back and shoulders, or with the "fasces"
(similar to a birch rod, but consisting of
8–10 lengths of willow rather than birch)
applied to the buttocks.
Such punishments could draw blood, and were
frequently inflicted in public.
Quintilian (c. 35 – c. 100) voiced some
opposition to the use of corporal punishment.
According to Robert McCole Wilson, "probably
no more lucid indictment of it has been made
in the succeeding two thousand years".
By that boys should suffer corporal punishment,
though it is received by custom, and Chrysippus
makes no objection to it, I by no means approve;
first, because it is a disgrace, and a punishment
fit for slaves, and in reality (as will be
evident if you imagine the age change) an
affront; secondly, because, if a boy's disposition
be so abject as not to be amended by reproof,
he will be hardened, like the worst of slaves,
even to stripes; and lastly, because, if one
who regularly exacts his tasks be with him,
there will not be the need of any chastisement
(Quintilian, Institutes of Oratory, 1856 edition,
I, III).
Plutarch, also in the first century, writes:
This also I assert, that children ought to
be led to honourable practices by means of
encouragement and reasoning, and most certainly
not by blows or ill-treatment, for it surely
is agreed that these are fitting rather for
slaves than for the free-born; for so they
grow numb and shudder at their tasks, partly
from the pain of the blows, partly from the
degradation.
=== Middle Ages ===
In Medieval Europe, the Byzantine Empire blinded
and denosed some criminals and rival emperors.
Their belief that the emperor should be physically
ideal meant that such disfigurement notionally
disqualified the recipient from office.
(The second reign of Justinian the Slit-nosed
was the notable exception.)
Elsewhere, corporal punishment was encouraged
by the attitudes of the Catholic church towards
the human body, flagellation being a common
means of self-discipline.
This had an influence on the use of corporal
punishment in schools, as educational establishments
were closely attached to the church during
this period.
Nevertheless, corporal punishment was not
used uncritically; as early as the eleventh
century Saint Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury
was speaking out against what he saw as the
excessive use of corporal punishment in the
treatment of children.
=== Modernity ===
From the 16th century onwards, new trends
were seen in corporal punishment.
Judicial punishments were increasingly turned
into public spectacles, with public beatings
of criminals intended as a deterrent to other
would-be offenders.
Meanwhile, early writers on education, such
as Roger Ascham, complained of the arbitrary
manner in which children were punished.Peter
Newell writes that perhaps the most influential
writer on the subject was the English philosopher
John Locke, whose Some Thoughts Concerning
Education explicitly criticised the central
role of corporal punishment in education.
Locke's work was highly influential, and may
have helped influence Polish legislators to
ban corporal punishment from Poland's schools
in 1783, the first country in the world to
do so.
During the 18th century, the concept of corporal
punishment was challenged by some philosophers
and legal reformers.
Merely inflicting pain was seen as an inefficient
form of discipline, influencing the subject
only for a short period of time and effecting
no permanent change in their behaviour.
Some believed that the purpose of punishment
should be reformation, not retribution.
This is perhaps best expressed in Jeremy Bentham's
idea of a panoptic prison, in which prisoners
were controlled and surveyed at all times,
perceived to be advantageous in that this
system supposedly reduced the need of measures
such as corporal punishment.
A consequence of this mode of thinking was
a reduction in the use of corporal punishment
in the 19th century in Europe and North America.
In some countries this was encouraged by scandals
involving individuals seriously hurt during
acts of corporal punishment.
For instance, in Britain, popular opposition
to punishment was encouraged by two significant
cases, the death of Private Frederick John
White, who died after a military flogging
in 1846, and the death of Reginald Cancellor,
killed by his schoolmaster in 1860.
Events such as these mobilised public opinion
and, by the late nineteenth century, the extent
of corporal punishment's use in state schools
was unpopular with many parents in England.
Authorities in Britain and some other countries
introduced more detailed rules for the infliction
of corporal punishment in government institutions
such as schools, prisons and reformatories.
By the First World War, parents' complaints
about disciplinary excesses in England had
died down, and corporal punishment was established
as an expected form of school discipline.In
the 1870s, courts in the United States overruled
the common-law principle that a husband had
the right to "physically chastise an errant
wife".
In the UK the traditional right of a husband
to inflict moderate corporal punishment on
his wife in order to keep her "within the
bounds of duty" was similarly removed in 1891.
See Domestic violence for more information.
In the United Kingdom, the use of judicial
corporal punishment declined during the first
half of the 20th century and it was abolished
altogether in the Criminal Justice Act, 1948
(zi & z2 GEo. 6.
CH. 58.), whereby whipping and flogging were
outlawed except for use in very serious internal
prison discipline cases, while most other
European countries had abolished it earlier.
Meanwhile, in many schools, the use of the
cane, paddle or tawse remained commonplace
in the UK and the United States until the
1980s.
In several other countries, it still is: see
School corporal punishment.
== International treaties ==
=== 
Human rights ===
Key developments related to corporal punishment
occurred in the late 20th century.
Years with particular significance to the
prohibition of corporal punishment are emphasised.
1950: European Convention of Human Rights,
Council of Europe.
Article 3 bars "inhuman or degrading treatment
or punishment".
1978: European Court of Human Rights, overseeing
its implementation, rules that judicial birching
of a juvenile breaches Article 3.
1985: Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration
of Juvenile Justice, or Beijing Rules, United
Nations (UN).
Rule 17.3: "Juveniles shall not be subject
to corporal punishment."
1990 Supplement: Rules for the Protection
of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty.
Rule 67: "...all disciplinary measures constituting
cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment shall
be strictly prohibited, including corporal
punishment..."
1990: Guidelines for the Prevention of Juvenile
Delinquency, the Riyadh Guidelines, UN.
Paragraph 21(h): education systems should
avoid "harsh disciplinary measures, particularly
corporal punishment."
1966: International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights, UN, with currently 167 parties,
74 signatories.
Article 7: "No one shall be subjected to torture
or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment
or punishment..."
1992: Human Rights Committee, overseeing its
implementation, comments: "the prohibition
must extend to corporal punishment . . . in
this regard . . . article 7 protects, in particular,
children, . . .."
1984: Convention against Torture and Other
Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment,
UN, with currently 150 parties and 78 signatories.1996:
Committee Against Torture, overseeing its
implementation, condemns corporal punishment.
1966: International Covenant on Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, UN, with currently
160 parties, and 70 signatories.
Article 13(1): "education shall be directed
to the full development of the human personality
and the sense of its dignity..."
1999: Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights, overseeing its implementation, comments:
"corporal punishment is inconsistent with
the fundamental guiding principle of international
human rights law . . . the dignity of the
individual."
1961: European Social Charter, Council of
Europe.
2001: European Committee of Social Rights,
overseeing its implementation, concludes:
it is not "acceptable that a society which
prohibits any form of physical violence between
adults would accept that adults subject children
to physical violence."
=== 
Children's rights ===
The notion of children’s rights in the Western
world developed in the 20th century, but the
issue of corporal punishment was not addressed
generally before mid-century.
Years with particular significance to the
prohibition of corporal punishment of children
are emphasised.
1923: Children's Rights Proclamation by Save
the Children founder.
(5 articles).
1924 Adopted as the World Child Welfare Charter,
League of Nations (non-enforceable).
1959: Declaration of the Rights of the Child,
(UN) (10 articles; non-binding).
1989: Convention on the Rights of the Child,
UN (54 articles; binding treaty), with currently
193 parties and 140 signatories.
Article 19.1: "States Parties shall take all
appropriate legislative, administrative, social
and educational measures to protect the child
from all forms of physical or mental violence,
injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment,
maltreatment or exploitation . . . ."
2006: Committee on the Rights of the Child,
overseeing its implementation, comments: there
is an "obligation of all States Party to move
quickly to prohibit and eliminate all corporal
punishment."
2011: Optional Protocol on a Communications
Procedure allowing individual children to
submit complaints regarding specific violations
of their rights.
2006: Study on Violence against Children presented
by Independent Expert for the Secretary-General
to the UN General Assembly.
2007: Post of Special Representative of the
Secretary-General on violence against children
established.
== Modern use ==
=== 
Legal status ===
58 countries, most of them in Europe and Latin
America, have prohibited any corporal punishment
of children.
The earliest recorded attempt to prohibit
corporal punishment of children by a state
dates back to Poland in 1783.
However, its prohibition in all spheres of
life – in homes, schools, the penal system
and alternative care settings – occurred
first in 1966 in Sweden.
The 1979 Swedish Parental Code reads: "Children
are entitled to care, security and a good
upbringing.
Children are to be treated with respect for
their person and individuality and may not
be subjected to corporal punishment or any
other humiliating treatment."As of 2018, corporal
punishment of children by parents (or other
adults) is outlawed in all settings in 54
nations and 3 constituent nations.
For a more detailed overview of the global
use and prohibition of the corporal punishment
of children, see the following table.
=== Corporal punishment in the home ===
Domestic corporal punishment, i.e. the punishment
of children by their parents, is often referred
to colloquially as "spanking", "smacking"
or "slapping."
It has been outlawed in an increasing number
of countries, starting with Sweden in 1966.
In some other countries, corporal punishment
is legal, but restricted (e.g. blows to the
head are outlawed, implements may not be used,
only children within a certain age range may
be spanked).
In all states of the United States and most
African and Asian nations, corporal punishment
by parents is currently legal.
It is also legal to use certain implements
such as a belt or paddle.
In Canada, spanking by parents or legal guardians
(but nobody else) is legal, as long as the
child is not under 2 years or at least 12
years of age, and no implement other than
an open, bare hand is used (belts, paddles,
etc. are strictly prohibited).
It is also illegal to strike the head when
disciplining a child.In the UK, spanking or
smacking is legal, but it must not cause an
injury amounting to Actual Bodily Harm (any
injury such as visible bruising, breaking
of the whole skin etc.); in addition, in Scotland,
since October 2003, it has been illegal to
use any implements or to strike the head when
disciplining a child, and it is also prohibited
to use corporal punishment towards children
under the age of 3 years.
In Pakistan, Section 89 of Pakistan Penal
Code allows corporal punishment.
=== Corporal punishment in schools ===
Corporal punishment in schools for misbehaviour
has been outlawed in many countries.
It often involves striking the student on
the buttocks or the palm of the hand with
an implement kept for the purpose such as
a rattan cane or spanking paddle, or with
the open hand.
There may be restrictions in some jurisdictions,
for example, in Singapore caning is permitted
for boys only.
Medical professionals have urged putting an
end to the practice, noting the danger of
injury to children's hands especially.
In India, corporal punishment has been abolished
by law.
However, corporal punishment continues to
exist and be practised in many Indian schools.
Cultural perception of corporal punishment
has rarely been studied and researched.
One study carried out by Arijit Ghosh and
Madhumathi Pasupathi discusses how corporal
punishment is perceived among parents and
students in the Indian context, with the help
of a representative sample size.
=== Judicial or quasi-judicial punishment
===
Around 33 countries in the world still retain
judicial corporal punishment, including a
number of former British territories such
as Botswana, Malaysia, Singapore and Tanzania.
In Singapore, for certain specified offences,
males are routinely sentenced to caning in
addition to a prison term.
The Singaporean practice of caning became
much discussed around the world in 1994 when
American teenager Michael P. Fay received
four strokes of the cane for vandalism.
Judicial caning and whipping are also used
in Aceh Province in Indonesia.A number of
other countries with an Islamic legal system,
such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Sudan and some
northern states in Nigeria, employ judicial
whipping for a range of offences.
As of 2009, some regions of Pakistan are experiencing
a breakdown of law and government, leading
to a reintroduction of corporal punishment
by ad hoc Islamicist courts.
As well as corporal punishment, some Islamic
countries such as Saudi Arabia and Iran use
other kinds of physical penalties such as
amputation or mutilation.
However, the term "corporal punishment" has
since the 19th century usually meant caning,
flagellation or bastinado rather than those
other types of physical penalty.In some countries
foot whipping (bastinado) is still practised
on prisoners.
== Ritual and punishment ==
In parts of England, boys were once beaten
under the old tradition of "Beating the Bounds"
whereby a boy was paraded around the edge
of a city or parish and spanked with a switch
or cane to mark the boundary.
One famous "Beating the Bounds" took place
around the boundary of St Giles and the area
where Tottenham Court Road now stands in central
London.
The actual stone that marked the boundary
is now underneath the Centre Point office
tower.
== In popular culture ==
Art
The Flagellation, (c.1455–70), by Piero
della Francesca.
Christ is lashed while Pontius Pilate looks
on.
The Whipping, (1941), by Horace Pippin.
A figure tied to a whipping post is flogged.Film
and TV
See: List of films and TV containing corporal
punishment scenes.
== See also
