Sue Bradford's Bull
Two episodes in the New Zealand smacking
debate
Spare the rod and spoil the child they say. And right now section 59 of the Crimes Act might say the rod's okay...it's fine to use reasonable force to discipline a child. Green MP Sue Bradford has a bill before Parliament which would amend section 59, to remove "reasonable force" which she says some parents use as a defence for using strong force when smacking their kids. But many say the change would turn good parents into criminals. A group of opponents to the bill has imported a pro-smacking campaigner from Sweden, a place that's banned smacking outright. Ruby Harrold-Claesson and Sue Bradford join us live.
Close up, TVNZ.CO.NZ, July 19, 2006
YouTube.com
From the debate in Wellington, New Zealand in August
2006, Sue Bradford answering a questioning from Brian Whitaker:
"Thank
you. My question’s for Sue Bradford: Sue on the interview on TV 1 with Susan
Wood and Ruby Harrold-Claesson you made reference to Swedish arr stats
regarding child abuse – for those that don’t know Sweden is held as a model of arr
what happens in a country where you don’t smack your kids. And you made the
claim that there were 1 death in 4 years in respect of child abuse. Now the
Children’s Commissioner has agreed that on average there are now 7 a year. In
light of that will you concede that NZ public were mislead by your
comment?"
YouTube.com, October 12, 2006