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School CP - February 1982
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The Guardian, London, 26 February 1982Parents win right to forbid school caningBy Gareth Parry
The European Court of Human Rights ruled yesterday that Britain was wrong to allow corporal punishment in schools against the wishes of parents. The six-to-one judgment in Strasbourg means that parents can, theoretically, forbid teachers to beat their children but it does not mean that such punishment will immediately be banned. The ruling, legally binding on the Government, received a mixed reaction. Teachers' unions expressed concern, corporal punishment abolitionists are calling for a total ban and the Department of Education side-stepped any hasty commitment. It is likely that this ruling will eventually lead to Britain joining the rest of Europe in banning the cane or strap. More than a third of the education authorities have already done so or intend to do so.
HERE IS THE CLIP:IMPORTANT: This video material is BBC copyright. This brief excerpt is reproduced under the "fair use" doctrine
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RELATED VIDEO CLIP (2 minutes 52 seconds) from BBC TV news, 25 Feb 1982.
European Court of Human Rights ruling in Campbell & Cosans (Scottish tawse) case rejects the claim that belting is inhuman and degrading, but upholds parents' right to have individual objections to school CP honoured. Staged scenes of tawse landing on hand. A tawsemaker is shown at work. Scenes at court in Strasbourg. One of the Scottish mothers reads a statement welcoming the ruling.
Off-screen reporter (Michael Buerk) summarises the possible implications for UK schools. (Notice how he uncritically adopts the anti-CP activists' emotive language about "beating", despite the BBC's rule requiring a neutral or balanced point of view on controversial issues.) Reaction by unnamed school teachers' union spokesman.
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