Updated | Family Minister favours banning of corporal punishment by parents

Family Minister Michael Farrugia has called for the banning of corporal punishment by parents, saying the law, as it stands, gives rise to ambiguity.

Farrugia was speaking at the launch of a research publication entitled ‘Let Me Thrive – a Research study on Foster Care in Malta.' The 154-page report, commissioned by the Commission for Children and compiled by Dr. Daniela DeBono and Dr. Marian Muscat Azzopardi is based on a multitude of in depth interviews with children in foster and state care and other stakeholders, aimed at improving the system of foster care. The report will be distributed to stakeholders and will also be available online at www.tfal.org.mt.

The Minister thanked the researchers for their efforts, assuring them that their work would not be consigned to a drawer, but used in policy making. Dr. Farrugia stressed the importance of evaluating the impact of every policy on children.

“I believe that children should be on the agenda for every decision ... children should be the last to suffer.”

He announced that in the coming months, laws would be promulgated to regulate various child-related issues, including proposing lowering the age limit for so-called “open adoption” and amendments to the system of care orders.

Multidisciplinary teams are to eventually replace the current advisory board. “Much has been done bit much more still to be done,” the minister said.

On the issue of parental discipline, Farrugia said that he believed that there should not be any beating of children and that it should be “removed.”

Maltese criminal law already prohibits children from being subjected to corporal punishment. Prior to the law being amended in 2014 it was allowed within moderate limits, but the definition of what exactly constituted moderation was unclear, the minister said.

“Discipline yes, but not violence. I believe the time has come for its removal, in line with other countries. How can you quantify reasonable chastisement?” Farrugia said this morning.

But asked if he was proposing the criminalising of physical discipline, he said this was not the case. “No. I am saying that beatings, large or small, should not be part of correcting children. I believe that the reasonable requirement in chastisement leaves a lot of question marks and should be removed.” 

He announced that a report investigating new methods of care was in an “advanced stage,” adding that he was also investigating measures to address problems in supervised access visits, which will be presented, together with others in a draft law to be tabled in parliament.