Madam Speaker, I have a number of petitions that I would like to present today.
The first petition supports section 43 of the Criminal Code of Canada. This section of the criminal code states that every school teacher, parent or person standing in the place of a parent is justified in using force by way of correction toward a pupil or child who is under his or her care, if the force does not exceed what is reasonable under the circumstances.
Section 43 recognizes the primary role of parents in the raising and disciplining of their children. The petitioners recognize that the federal government is under pressure from various sources, including the United Nations, to remove section 43 because we have ratified the UN convention on the rights of the child. Removal of this section would strengthen the role of bureaucrats while weakening the role of parents in determining what is in the best interest of the child and, therefore, would be a major and unjustified inclusion by the state into parental rights and responsibilities.
The petitioners recognize that despite the government's stated attempt to preserve section 43, it continues to fund research by people who advocate its removal. Therefore, they request parliament to affirm the duty of parents to responsibly raise their children according to their own conscience and beliefs and to retain section 43 in Canada's criminal code as it is currently worded.