Paula Manumanunitoga said teachers feel threatened in the classroom and parents are not playing their part. Photo: RNZI/Sally Round
The Fijian Teachers Association (FTA) is advocating for "some form" of corporal punishment to enforce discipline in primary and secondary schools, but the government says physical punishment cannot be the solution to indiscipline.
The association's general secretary Paula Manumanunitoga told a forum on corporal punishment in Suva this week that teachers feel threatened in the classroom and parents are not playing their part.
He said teachers were being sworn at, had objects thrown at them, were verbally abused, and had their hair pulled.
He said it is a "serious matter" and the FTA is worried about the country.
"FTA is proposing that there should be some form... we would not want to call it corporal punishment. Some have gone to the extent of calling it violence," Manumanunitoga said.
"We are suggesting that it be only with the head of school and following the strict conditions of strapping a leather belt. It would be a deterrent for students. I was a primary school teacher, if I lay a belt on my table the students would not make a noise. But when that belt disappears, there's havoc in the classroom."
However, the country's Education Minister Aseri Radrodro said discipline must always be guided by law, compassion, and respect for the rights and dignity of every child.
Fijian Education Minister Aseri Radrodro Photo: RNZ Pacific/Kelvin Anthony
Under Fiji's 2013 Constitution and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which Fiji ratified in 1993, all forms of inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment are prohibited.
Radrodro said this was what guided the Education Ministry's approach to discipline and child protection in schools.
"The Ministry of Education maintains a zero-tolerance policy on abuse, neglect, exploitation and corporal punishment," he said.
"Our teachers must adhere to the Student Code of Conduct which promotes respect, safety and engagement and we encourage parents to take the lead as the first teachers in their homes."
Photo: 123RF
Fiji's permanent secretary for justice and a psychologist Selina Kuruleca said when a child is struck - even lightly - the brain will register danger.
Citing a United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) report, Kuruleca said 81 percent of Fijian children - eight out of 10 - experience violent discipline at home.
She told participants at the national dialogue discipline should not break a child's spirit, it should build it.
A letter published in The Fiji Times on Wednesday questioned the need for such a public dialogue on the issue.
"Why have a national conversation on corporal punishment when it is common knowledge that classroom behaviour had deteriorated since the abolition of corporal punishment?" wrote Wise Muavono from Lautoka.
"It is inevitable that bad classroom behaviour has filtered into life outside school. The no smacking rule is turning some children into monsters."
Another letter writer and teacher Rajnesh Lingam wrote, "Dialogue is a must as we aim to address negative behaviour in children."
"We can't leave this unattended as it will have drastic consequences on teaching and learning in schools, communities and societies," he wrote.
Unicef Pacific chief of child protection Michael Copeland told ABC Pacific Beat the discussion about how to discipline children is a "difficult" one.
Copeland said calling for a return to hitting children "is a cry for help".
He said there were other options to discipline children instead of corporal punishment.
These could be school counselling, mental health services for kids who were struggling, capacity building for teachers, and parenting training, he said.
"Kids aren't born bad and disruptive," he said.
"They're coming out in particular environments [and] we've got gaps around more advanced and dedicated services, mental health services, and then alongside that, we've got families who are really struggling."
The National Conversation on Corporal Punishment was organised by Fiji's Ministry of Women, Children and Social Protection. The event brought together key voices from the judiciary, education, psychology, faith communities, and development partners.
