What's this all about?

Here are some facts and excerpts from people's letters that you might like to consider as you write your email to the MPs.

Click here to listen to the famous Helen Clark & Bob McCoskrie interview of 2005

Read Section 59 as it stands - or read Sue Bradford's proposed Bill to replace Section 59

Repealling section 59 is no way to even begin to impact domestic violence towards children. Very few cases exist where unjust use of section 59 is claimed, and even these are relatively sketchy and doubtful. As far as I know, Section 59 has only been used once or twice to perhaps let parents who have mistreated their children off the hook.

Repealling section 59 is only going to damage families further, resulting in a next generation even more unruly than this one. To be honest, many many of the children being raised up today are simply not good for New Zealand. We need this next generation to have a good work ethic, good morals, not young people who were disrespectful to their parents and who were often allowed to have tantrums, etc. If children need not respect their parents, why should we expect them to respect the law of New Zealand?

None of us “anti-repealists” are saying that smacking children is the be-all and end-all for discipline in the home. However, to outlaw smacking is quite frankly, a massive attack on almost all religions and cultures in New Zealand. It's an attack on common-sense. The very idea of saying that reasonable force is unreasonable is ridiculous. If parents are getting away with abuse, then this indicates poor application of the law.

Please stand up for New Zealand families, and vote against the repeal of Section 59.

Of course, there have been instances of abuse of the right that parent h4rently have. Outlawing the use of reasonable force, in child discipline, however is not the way to solve the problem.

Parents who do use smacking (physically discipline) in the upbringing of their children do not enjoy it. Many parents look at where we've come from, our past, and see that for hundreds, even thousands of years, children have been smacked. Bradford and the liberals really shouldn't have the audacity to think "we've got all the answers"!

Smacking is not violence.

No reliable studies have ever been taken that show that smacking a child results in agressive behaviour. Smacking a child in love is not teaching the child that "hitting is OK". This is a sad attempt by the liberals at undermining this crucial role of parents in a child's life.

We do recommend that you check out www.familyintegrity.org.nz and www.familyfirst.org.nz.

This website is not directly affiliated with any other organisation or religious group. It is here to raise people's awareness of the Section 59 debate, what it's about, and what we can be doing. It also provides a step by step guide to emailing the MPs.