Image courtesy: newmatilda.com
Vilnius: Lithuania on Tuesday imposed a total ban on the corporal punishment of children following a rise in public pressure in the EU member state to curb child abuse.
The amendments to a law on children's rights that prohibit any use of force were endorsed by all 116 lawmakers who showed up to cast their votes in the 141-seat parliament.
Several lawmakers had earlier warned against state interference in family life, however.
Public pressure to pass the long-debated law grew after a four-year-old boy was beaten to death last month by his mother and her boyfriend.
Tests on the couple showed they had used methamphetamine prior to killing the child.
Lawmaker Dovile Sakaliene told AFP that the boy's death had helped Lithuanians "understand how fast physical punishment can lead to serious injuries, and why the first slap must be prevented."
Child rights activists submitted a petition to parliament signed by over 30,000 people, including celebrities, calling on lawmakers to approve the measures.
US-based watchdog Human Rights Watch hailed the new law, which has made Lithuania the 52nd country to prohibit the corporal punishment of children.
"Lithuania joins a growing community of countries that recognise that this practice violates children's rights and their physical integrity," said HRW's Bede Sheppard.
Nils Muiznieks, the Council of Europe's commissioner for human rights, also saluted the ban.
"I welcome today's vote ... in #Lithuania to ban all forms of violence against children, incl. #corporalpunishments," he wrote on Twitter.
