Oh dear

Stuff reports:

The anti-smacking law is to blame for youth suicide, youth prostitution and even sexually-transmitted infections, a leading Conservative party candidate claims.

Maybe it is to blame for global warming also?

Edward Saafi, who is fifth on the Conservative list and would be elected if they break the 5 per cent threshold, has delivered the striking message during recent speeches at Tongan churches, Fairfax has learned.

“We are starting to recognise the incidence of suicide going up in Pacific communities, especially the Tongan community and people are starting to understand the lead-on from this legislation.

“Once you pass it, children, rather than doing what mum and dad says, they go and commit suicide. It opens up another thing they could do,” Saafi, who holds a doctorate in biomedicine, said.

Yeah those kids go off and commit suicide because they didn’t get disciplined! Inredible.

I’m not a fan of the anti-smacking law, and would amend it to allow light correctional smacking. But this argument is rather nuts.

Asked if he thought there was a direct link between the anti-smacking bill and youth suicide, Saafi said: “It’s just common sense, really. It’s our way of thinking parents have a role to look after their kids, including disciplining them. If the law tells the child that mum and dad can’t discipline you any more, they will do whatever they want, including these other alternatives like suicide. It’s quite appalling.”

Stephen Bell of Youthline, a youth mental health counselling service, said there was nothing to support Saafi’s views, and there had been a downward trend in youth suicide statistics since the law change in 2007.

“There is no evidence that links the two and I am quite horrified that someone will use the death of young people to try and rationalise or justify their particular view of the planet,” he said.

The overall suicide rate in 2011 was 10.6 per 100,000. That is the lowest it has been since 1985.

The youth suicide rate bounces around more. It was 19.3 in 2011 and was 15.2 in 2007.  But that was an unusually low year. For the last decade it has averaged in the 18s over every three year cycle.

Saafi said the legalisation of prostitution had led to children “sneaking off at night to get extra pocket money” and returning home with sexual infections, the treatment of which stretched their parents’ budgets as they paid medical bills.

First of all prostitution was not legalised. It has been legal for decades. It was solicitation that was legalised. And it is illegal for someone under 18 to be a prostitute.