Beating of children at home will not be tolerated - Ramaphosa
President Cyril Ramaphosa believes the Constitutional Court ruling on corporal punishment will send a strong message that the beating of children will not be tolerated.
The highest court in the land upheld a 2017 high court judgment outlawing corporal punishment in private homes.
The court handed down the ruling on Wednesday morning.
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The landmark ruling was appealed by lobby group Freedom of Religion South Africa on the grounds that it would turn well-meaning parents into criminals.
Ramaphosa - during his address at the joint sitting of the Nationals Assembly and the National Council of Provinces on Wednesday on the crisis of gender-based violence and femicide - said the spanking of children needed to be dealt with.
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"When we talk about violence against children we focus on sexual abuse, but the battering of children is a very serious problem that must also get sufficient attention.
"Children do need and must be protected from forms of violence whether itis the home, streets or schools. This judgment will send a strong message that the beating of children will not be tolerated at all costs."