for immediate release
from Parent.org

Well done Maori Party

Lobby group, Parent.org, congratulates the Maori Party on their support of the bill to fully repeal section 59 of the Crimes Act.

"By doing this they are saying to the nation, "we want better things for our parents"", said the groups chair, Steve Gore. Parent.org has long argued that section 59 is a barrier to better parenting.

"It doesn't matter whether or not you believe smacking is good parenting," said Mr. Gore. "Section 59 is the only piece of legislation that gives any guidance to parents and what it says to the world is that we care so little about whether our parents are skilled or motivated that we have enshrined in legislation the right to treat their children in a way that they are not allowed to treat their dog or their neighbour. It sets the bar for parenting so low you need a spade to find it."

The group also disputes the widely spread notion that good parents will be prosecuted if Section 59 is repealed.

"Repealing the act is not the same as actively banning smacking. It simply removes a badly written section from the Crimes Act that has been used to justify child abuse, meaning the Crimes Act makes no comment on parents. If the doom sayers are correct in saying that parents would be imprisoned for minor offenses then they have got to concede that rugby players are equally art risk for of being charged with assault, theft and rioting as the Crimes Act has no section exempting tackles, intercepts and the like from prosecution. If our national religion can thrive without a Section 59 then parenting shouldn't need one either."

In its submission to the select committee Parent.org highlighted that rugby has no protection from the Crimes Act and the game itself constituted several breaches. The same principal of de minimis that allows contact sports to function will apply to parents.

The group urges all MP's to support repeal and then put their energy into creating an environment for parents that makes skills and knowledge easier to get and success easier to achieve.

ENDS

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