Bad grades at school, an ordeal at home. A Bernese father has just been sentenced for regularly beating his son, allegedly because of his school results. The penal order (OP) paints a chilling picture: in addition to slaps and kicks, the 49-year-old man had notably used a stick, a belt or even a strap to inflict corporal punishment of his child.
This abuse, which lasted around a year and a half, was eventually discovered by the child protection authorities, who reported the case to the Bernese Public Prosecutor’s Office. The forty-year-old was fined 800 francs and will have to pay the costs of the proceedings. The OP does not specify whether the defendant had custody of his child taken away.
According to Mischa Oesch, psychologist in the child protection unit at the Inselspital in Bern, such situations of abuse are not unusual. The specialist estimates that around eighty cases are discovered each year in her department. Added to these are the situations denounced by teachers or social workers, for example. Not to mention that many cases go under the radar.
And it is not uncommon for these abuses to be committed to “boost” children’s academic performance: “some parents do not understand that beatings do not make children smarter or make them try harder,” notes Mischa Oesch. On the contrary, violence would have a harmful impact on concentration, motivation to learn, or even the control of emotions. As they grow up, victims of abuse more often present with health problems such as post-traumatic stress disorder, addictions, depression or even anxiety, according to the psychologist.
Swiss pediatric clinics have identified 2,097 cases of child and adolescent abuse in 2023, according to a report established by the Swiss Pediatric Society. This figure represents an increase, the third in a row, of 11% compared to the previous year. Cases of psychological abuse are the most numerous (31.8%), ahead of situations of neglect (28%) and physical abuse (26.3%). Note that most (77.6%) of this mistreatment occurs within the family.
