Switch (corporal punishment)

Punitive switching

Switches are typically made of strong and flexible wood, such as hazel (also used for a very severe birch) or hickory. Birch and willow branches are also used, as well as branches from strong trees and large shrubs. Switches are often nearby from a garden, an orchard or taken from the wild. In the Southeastern United States, fresh-cut, flexible cane (Arundinaria) is commonly used. The usage of switches has been hotly contested in North America and Europe.[1]

Making a switch involves cutting it from the stem and removing twigs or directly attached leaves. For optimal flexibility, it is cut fresh shortly before use, rather than keeping it for re-use over time. Some parents decide to make the cutting of a switch an additional form of punishment for a child, by requiring the disobedient child to cut his/her own switch.

  • The tamarind switch (in Creole English tambran switch) is a judicial birch-like instrument for corporal punishment made from three tamarind rods, braided and oiled, used long after independence in the Caribbean Commonwealth island states of Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago.[2]
  • The Gilbertese tribal community at Wagina in Choiseul province (Solomon Islands) reintroduced by referendum in 2005 traditional "whipping" with coconut tree branches for various offences – the national justice system opposes this.[3]
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See also

References
  1. Gould, Mark (January 9, 2007). "Sparing the Rod". The Guardian. London: Guardian News and Media. Retrieved February 5, 2009.
  2. Parker, Quincy (March 7, 2007). "Human Rights Abuse Concerns". The Bahama Journal. Jones Communications Nassau Bahamas. Retrieved February 5, 2009.
  3. "Floggings cut crime: village leader". AAP. The Sydney Morning Herald. March 9, 2006. Retrieved February 5, 2009.
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