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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 5 Hansard (14 May) . . Page.. 1379 ..

MS TUCKER (continuing):

In last night's budget we saw the appalling cut to the Human Rights Commission of 40 per cent. Recently, we have also seen a reluctance by the Federal Government to join international protests against human rights abuses whenever some small part of Australia's trade might be adversely affected.

Here today, this debate is about the rights of children not to be victim to physical punishment in our schools. It is an opportunity for this Liberal Government to distance themselves from their colleagues on the hill at this critical time in Australian social history. We hear you deplore the simple opportunistic responses of Pauline Hanson to complex issues, and I am glad to see today that you are able to acknowledge the complexity of the issue of violence in our society and the human rights issue that is at the root of this proposed legislation. I am hoping that is what you are acknowledging by supporting this legislation. I did not hear you say that in your speech.

Regardless of whether a school is public or private, there are certain community standards that should be applied across the board, and violence towards children is one of these. This legislation will bring the ACT into line with New South Wales, which will require from 22 December this year that no schools use corporal punishment. We must not lose sight of the big picture on violence. We must also not lose sight of the longer-term costs of not taking appropriate legislative action or of government not providing support for programs in our schools and in the community which reduce violence.

The recommendations of the Social Policy Committee report on the prevention of violence in schools need to be given much greater consideration by this Government. Comments already coming in to the Social Policy Committee inquiry into services for children at risk confirm that there are serious problems that are not being addressed in the area of young people in violent environments. The Government's responsibility is clearly to ensure that they have a very good understanding of what is happening in this area and that appropriate services are in place to protect children. I support these Bills with great pleasure.

MR MOORE (12.14), in reply: Mr Speaker, I rise with a very warm feeling that what is going to happen in this Assembly is a major step forward for the rights of children. I think Ms McRae touched on something very important when she said that the process here has not been one of legislation, the process has been one of discussion and debate. In the very early 1970s, Mr Speaker, when I started teaching, I did indeed use corporal punishment. After a very short while, I decided that it was an entirely inappropriate method to use, and I became involved in that debate. What we see today is an end point of that debate. Now that the community is onside, we can reinforce that position within the community and legislate accordingly. There will always be one or two schools or a small group of people who will still ignore the rights of children to feel safe.

A quite interesting lame argument was put by Ms McRae - that in some way I oppose prohibition, therefore why would I attempt to prohibit this. I do not oppose the prohibition of rape; I do not oppose the prohibition of murder; I do not oppose the prohibition of any action taken by one person that hurts another. I have never opposed that style of prohibition and I do not intend to. That is what the law is about.

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