Brian Rudman. Photo / Supplied

Brian Rudman. Photo / Supplied

Don't be fooled - the smackers' campaign is not an issue of constitutional importance.

Child, Youth and Family Services reports about 13,000 New Zealand youngsters are abused each year.

How humiliating to live in a country where $500,000 is being spent encouraging people to march up the main street of our biggest city demanding the right to beat their kids.

It could only happen in a country with one of the worst child murder rates in the developed world.

Instead of parading up Queen St this Saturday, waving their wooden spoons and looking for bottoms to belt, Colin Craig, the organiser and bankroller of this crassly named March for Democracy, and his supporters should be holding a candle for each abused child.

Tragically, the turnout would have to be massive to achieve that.

Child, Youth and Family Services reports about 13,000 New Zealand youngsters are abused each year. That's investigated cases.

The former Children's Commissioner Cindy Kiro says the true rate is likely to be much higher.

Last Saturday, the Herald reported that almost 1800 children whose abuse or neglect was detected by social workers last year were re-abused within six months - that's five a day - often by the same parents or family members.

Despite this horrendous culture of abuse, Mr Craig will process up Queen St with his merry marchers to demand that their ancient right to smack their children be restored. Will the penny never drop that he'd be doing more for democracy - and the kids of New Zealand - if his $500,000 went into something as simple as parenting lessons - or support services - for at-risk young parents.

Asked if he smacked his 4-year old daughter, Mr Craig concedes that "on occasion I've found it necessary to give her a little flick on the hand, yes". No doubt he does it with love, and it hurts him more than it hurts her and blah blah blah.

Thankfully, Prime Minister John Key and his Labour opponents are staying firm in their support of the so-called anti-smacking legislation they jointly supported back in 2007.

Despite the populist hysteria whipped up by the pro-beaters at the time, they backed Sue Bradford's private member's bill removing the anomaly from the law books that allowed parents to do to their children something that would have resulted in assault charges if they had done it to each other, or to another adult.