In February of 2001, the then Education Minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar pioneered legislation which led to a ban on corporal punishment in schools.According to the United Global Initiative: "Corporal punishment of children breaches their fundamental human rights to respect for human dignity and physical integrity. Its legality in almost every state worldwide-in contrast to other forms of inter-personal violence-challenges the universal right to equal protection under the law."During the first decade of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) its Treaty Body, the Committee on the Rights of the Child, has consistently stated that persisting legal and social acceptance of corporal punishment is incompatible with the Convention.
The CRC requires states to protect children from "all forms of physical and mental violence" while in the care of parents and others (Article 19). The committee has recommended that states in all continents should implement legal reforms to prohibit all corporal punishment and public education campaigns to promote positive, non-violent forms of discipline, including within the family, schools and other institutions and penal systems.In particular, the committee has condemned legal concepts which attempt to define "acceptable" violence to children-"reasonable chastisement", "lawful correction" and so on.(www.endcorporalpunishment.org)