Ads warn against slapping children

A television advertising campaign urging parents and guardians not to slap children will begin this weekend. As part of its Positive Parenting programme the Irish Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Children will run two advertisements on RTE1 and Network 2.

The purpose of the ads was to get parents and carers to think about the use of slapping, said the chief executive of the ISPCC, Mr Paul Gilligan.

"Often when a child is misbehaving they are really just exploring behaviour," he said.

In the case of a temper tantrum, he said, it was best to ignore the child to "take power out of the tantrum as a weapon children use against adults".

The first screening of the ads will be on RTE1 on Friday during The Late Late Show.

One shows a girl who has cut her sister's hair. Rather than slapping, the mother sends her to her room to think about how she will make it up to her sister. She decides to make a present.

In the second a child throws a tantrum. When her guardian walks out of the room and closes the door, the child asks what is the point in a tantrum when no one pays attention.

"Sometimes," she says, "it's better to ignore us children. It beats slapping hands down."

The society has also produced a number of publications for expectant parents, those working with expectant parents, and those working with parents and children who have experienced domestic violence.

The society also announced a Name The Babies competition to fund these initiatives.