Not that I agree with Rosslyn Noonan, Chief Human Rights Commissioner, but according to this news item we are already back to square one in respect of the anti-smacking law;
She says force can be used when it is reasonable to do so, such as stopping the child from hurting themselves or others.
What the 'yes' vote urgers are missing is this. Because of a combination of media reporting and the controversial debate about banning smacking, the social climate has changed. There is hysteria about child abuse abroad. This isn't dissimilar to the hysteria over sexual abuse earlier. (Sexual abuse similarly underwent a change of definition to eventually encompassing any unwanted touching.)
Many more people are reporting what they personally define as abuse or assault which the police may or may not prosecute. The reports do not need witness substantiation or evidence. If the particular police involved are inclined towards empathising with the current climate, a prosecution is more likely to occur. There have been and will be miscarriages of justice.
People cognisant of what has happened are fearful, with good reason. Worse, I don't think there is any putting this cat back in the bag.
Unfit remarks
1 hour ago
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Because of a combination of media reporting and the controversial debate about banning smacking, the social climate has changed. There is hysteria about child abuse abroad.
The state wishes to control the raising of every child (in this case it wishes to control how parents respond when a child misbehaves), so it started a witch hunt aimed at parents who smack. At the same time it changed the law to make it easier for citizen-spies and state-paid thugs to interfere in people's private business, i.e. how they raise their children. It's state terrorism directed at parents and as per usual the media trumpets the state line.
People know that they are being watched and that citizen-spies are making a lot more reports to the state authorities, so they modify their parenting methodology. Effectively and legally the state controls the raising of every child in NZ, and this is utterly evil.
http://kiwipolemicist.wordpress.com/2009/07/09/the-anti-smacking-law-lets-citizens-be-agents-of-state-terrorism/
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