Prime Minister champions SDG parliamentary action on corporal punishment

The government of Jamaica is committed to banning corporal punishment throughout the nation consistent with Sustainable Development Goals number 3 and 16, Prime Minister of Jamaica, the Most Honourable Andrew Holness announced on Tuesday, 7 November in Jamaica’s Parliament.

“I must reiterate the commitment to not only banning corporal punishment in schools but generally in society”, he emphasized noting that this would directly impact on Jamaica’s  achievement of Goal 3 – Good Health and Well-being and Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions. “Jamaica recognizes this and is taking the necessary steps to make the changes required” he said.  

The Prime Minister was making a special contribution on the Sustainable Development Goals at the 7 November sitting of the House of Representatives. Earlier, the Prime Minister and nearly all 63 members of the House had been pinned with commemorative SDG pins by high school students under the guidance of the United Nations Country Team to Jamaica.

The Prime Minister said he wanted to remove corporal punishment as an option by changing the means by which children are disciplined and how conflicts are resolved in Jamaican society. “While we highlight the importance of the SDGs today, we must reflect on their all-encompassing influence in making the world a better place for our children,” he said.

Mr Holness in making his case for banning corporal punishment highlighted the findings of a recently launched UNICEF’s global report: A Familiar Face: Violence in the Lives of Children and Adolescentswhich he said indicated “a frightening number of Jamaican children who die violently and who are regularly subjected to sexual violence and violent discipline in their homes, schools and communities.” In launching the report last week, UNICEF Jamaica highlighted relevant local data on violence against children, including the fact that eight in ten Jamaican children in the 2-14 years age group experience some form of violent discipline. UNICEF also noted that Jamaica remains one of the countries where children do not receive full protection against violence at school since corporal punishment is still legal above the early childhood institution level of schooling.

The Prime Minister specially recognized the participation of students in the SDG ‘pinning ceremony’, noting that they would play a pivotal role in leading the charge for SDG implementation. “Their presence clearly symbolizes increasing awareness and interest in the global development agenda, which augurs well for the sustainability of Jamaica’s efforts towards attaining the SDGs,” he said.

UN Jamaica mobilized student leaders from five Kingston high schools for the occasion. They included: Malik Palmer, Head Girl, Excelsior High; Chad Rattray, Student Council President, Kingston College; Kyle Bedassie, Head Boy, St George's College; Andrew Mullings, Head Boy Kingston College; Schenelle Grey, UN Club President, Convent of Mercy Alpha Academy; and Sarah Lee Tucker, UN Club President, Ardenne High School. 

UN Jamaica which organised the parliamentary activity is on an ongoing public education and advocacy campaign in collaboration with the Planning Institute of Jamaica to spread awareness about the 17 SDG's, the global plan to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity.

Without changing the means by which we discipline our children and how we resolve conflict; and on that note I must reiterate the commitment to not only banning corporal punishment in schools but generally in society so that it is no longer an option.