Dialogue Fiji has strongly condemned the recommendation by the Standing Committee on Justice, Law and Human Rights to remove a key provision banning corporal punishment from the proposed Education Bill 2025.
The organisation said the decision to delete Clause 73 — which explicitly prohibited corporal punishment and other forms of degrading treatment in schools — weakens child protection safeguards.
Executive Director Nilesh Lal said the justification that such protections are already covered in the Constitution is deeply flawed.
“The Constitution sets out general guarantees. It is legislation that gives life to those guarantees by defining standards, obligations, enforcement mechanisms, and accountability,” Mr Lal said.
“To argue that a protection should be removed from legislation simply because it exists in the Constitution reflects a serious misunderstanding of how human rights are implemented in practice.”
Dialogue Fiji stressed that constitutional rights require clear legal frameworks to ensure they are enforceable and meaningful in real-world settings.
“Constitutional rights are not self-executing in a vacuum. They must be supported by detailed legislation to ensure clarity, accountability and institutional responsibility,” Mr Lal added.
He said the removal of Clause 73 creates uncertainty and risks weakening protections for students.
“It is settled constitutional doctrine that legislation must not be inconsistent with the Constitution. However, legislation that strengthens or advances these rights is not only permissible — it is necessary.”
Dialogue Fiji described the clause as one of the most progressive elements of the Bill, warning that its deletion signals a concerning step backward in efforts to protect children from abuse and degrading treatment in schools.
