Governmental Punishment for Child Abuse - Research Paper Example

Introduction Child abuse is a very serious problem in society that requires quick response to save mankind from extinction. In the United states, each state has its own definition of what constitutes child abuse and neglect but this should be based o the federal minimum (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 1). The Federal Child Abuse and Treatment Act (CAPTA) as amended by Keeping Children Families Safe Act of 2003 defines child abuse and neglect as “Any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or caretaker which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse or exploitation,” or “an act or failure to act which presents an imminent risk of serious harm” (p. 2). Acting in a manner that would harm the child or not acting to prevent harm is thus considered as abuse. The four major types of child abuse include: physical abuse, neglect, sexual abuse, and emotional abuse. Children are a very vulnerable group as they cannot defend themselves and more so because the same people who are supposed to take care and nurture and love them are same people causing the worst form of harm to them. So, what should the government do with abusive parents? Should it punish the parents who abuse their children? This is a very controversial debate since punishing the parents would seem the normal thing to do but we cannot forget that children need their parents in order to develop normally hence punishing them will be detrimental to their well being. This paper will try to argue whether the government should punish parents of abuse children or not. One critical debate given by Henry is truancy. Education is very important and all parents are required to ensure their children go to school by enrolling them and following them up (Henry, npag).What happens when children start failing to attend lessons? Is the parent or the child to blame and should the parent be punished for it? According to Henry, it is the duty of the parent to ensure that children attend school and as such the responsibility lies squarely on them. Parents should understand that education is the key to unlocking future potential and as such denying the child education is destroying his/ her future thus this is child abuse in form of neglect. The government should thus take measures against parents to ensure their children attend school and more so all the lessons. Some people would argue that the “children are fully responsible for their behavior and that punishing the parent would not give the child idea of consequence for their actions” (Henry, npag). While this is true, the parents should know how to deal with their children’s behavior and ensure they go to school. They can even enlist the help of school authorities but letting them miss school is tantamount to neglect and parents should be punished for it. This would help them to instill good behavior in their children and consequently provide them with bright future. Another argument proposed by Debatewise.org concerns the effects of smoking on children. Is this child abuse and should it be punished? Cigarette smoking is harmful to health be it of an adult or a child but cigarette smoking is not illegal in the US. As such, people including parents are allowed to smoke but what does this do to a child? Does it constitute child abuse? As noted earlier, child abuse is acting or failing to act which presents imminent harm to the child. Cigarette smoking can cause serious health problems to the child as a result of 2nd hand or passive smoking. It has been scientifically proven to affect the development of a child hence is a form of abuse (Debatewise.org). It can also cause health related problems such as asthma and pneumonia not forgetting the effect it has on children in their adulthood; they also become smokers. Moreover, it can affect the mental and psychological development of a child and as such parents who smoke around the children should be punished. However, there are numerous challenges in trying to enforce such a rule. First, it would be difficult to prove that the parent smoked near the child as there could be designated areas for smoking (Debatewise.org). Secondly, smoking is not illegal hence punishing a parent would be against the law and more over, separating a child from the parent would cause emotional problems for the child. However, this should not be used an excuse to smoke around children thereby causing them health risks. Parents should thus be punished as this is a form of child abuse. Another form of child abuse and neglect is not providing the child with essential basic needs in accordance with the convention on children rights. Some parents deny children healthcare, education, food and clothing and good shelter (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2). Emotional abuse occurs when one fails to provide a child with psychological care or to attend to her/his emotional needs (p. 3). So should they be punished for this? Neglecting a child is a crime that punishable by law. According to National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS) 64.2% of child victims were neglected inn2006 while 1530bchildren died of abuse/neglect (USDHHS, 65). This represented 2.04 per 100000 in national population. Parents should ensure their children are well taken care of and if the parent is not able, the children welfare services can give support (DePanfilis, npag). Even if the parents do not have the ability to provide essential things to their children, they have the responsibility to seek help from such services. Parents should thus be punished for neglect, whether is a result of failure to act by not seeking help or acting by neglecting them willfully. Physical abuse entails inflicting physical injuries on the child by punching, beating, hitting, stabbing, throwing, and kicking or any other form of violence leading to physical harm (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2). According to NCANDS, 16% of children were physically abused in 2006 (USDHHS, III). This is an issue which has been debated widely bearing in mind that children need to be disciplined from time to time. Should the parents discipline their children by spanking and hitting them or what means should they use to instill discipline? Capital punishment is prohibited in many states hence causing physical injury to the child in the name of discipline is not allowed and parents should be punished for it. Conclusion Child abuse is a serious problem in society and cause of health problems for children and death. It entails acting or failure to act resulting in the harm of the child and can be in form of physical abuse, neglect, sexual abuse and emotional abuse. Issues concerning children are difficult to handle since most of the solutions would in one way or another cause more harm to the child. Of crucial importance is whether parents who abuse their children should be punished. In this work, I have argued that parents should be punished for abusing their children. This is because abuse may lead to severe consequences even death. NCANDS records show that 1530 children died of neglect in 2006 and 1460 children in 2005. This is a high number of deaths and these children could become useful members of the society in future. Furthermore, children are very vulnerable as they do not have someone to protect them hence stern action should be take against parents or caregivers to protect children from further harm. References Child Welfare Information Gateway. Child Abuse and Neglect: What is Child Abuse and Neglect. April 2008. Web. 14 Jan, 2013. http://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/factsheets/whatiscan.pdf Debatewise.org. Punishing Parents who Smoke around Children. http://www.debatewise.org/debates/3020-punishing-parents-who-smoke-around-children, 14 Jan, 2013. DePanfilis, D. Child Neglect: A Guide for Prevention, Assessment and Intervention. USDHHS Child Abuse and Neglect User Manual Series. 2006. Web. 14 Jan 2013. http://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/usermanuals/neglect/neglect.pdf Henry, Jessica. Playing Truant: Should Parents Be Punished. May 17, 2012. Web. Jan 14, 2013. Http://yougov.co.uk/news/2012/05/17/playing-truant-should-parents-be-punished US Department of Health and Human Services. Child Maltreatment 2006. Washington, DC. Web 14 Jan 2013. http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/pubs/cm06/index.htm Read More