‘No beatings for a month’: China father rewards son for top exams marks with exemption from corporal punishment
- Father admits he beats son often, usually for playing video games
- ‘Reward’ prompts debate about value of corporal punishment, which remains common in China
A father in China has granted his son a one-month exemption from beatings after the boy received top marks during a recent school exam, prompting online debate about corporal punishment in China.
The man, surnamed Zhang, from Shangdong province in eastern China, issued his son a cardboard plaque with words that translate into English as “beating-exemption gold medal”, according to Dianshi News.
The accolade mimicked a death penalty exemption that used to be awarded by emperors in China, granting the recipients immunity from executions.
According to the plaque, the beating exemption lasts one month but would be revoked for “principle violations” such as stealing or playing video games.
Zhang said in a video clip that online games were the primary source of conflict between him and his son, and he often resorts to corporal punishment to dissuade the boy from his habit.
“My son asked me to buy him an assembly toy set recently. I refused at first, saying we have plenty of similar toys at home,” Zhang said.
