The rights of children have come under the spotlight in South Africa recently. Corporal punishment, which has been banned in the country's schools since 1996, is now also illegal in the home.
This latest ruling was justified on the basis that children, like adults, have a right to be protected from assault. While the ruling itself has provoked some controversy, the idea of children having "protection rights" - the right to be protected from violent, abusive, cruel or exploitative treatment - has not.
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