‘I saw a mum hit her child’: Is it ever ok to intervene?

Where do you stand?

A woman has started a debate online by asking if it's appropriate to speak up when you see a parent hitting their child. The anonymous Facebook user sought advice after coming across a distressing scene, reports The Daily Mail.

"So I saw a mum hit her child (looked around two years old) outside Woolies today, smacked her on the bottom three times really hard,' the user wrote on the site.

"I was absolutely raging, but wasn’t sure if I should say something. I felt so bad for the child that the mum was so weak and had to hit her rather than discipline her with words.'

"What would you guys have done? Would I be right to say something? Poor bub started crying... I'm sure there are worse parents out there but any abuse isn't good.

Most people who commented said that they wouldn't say anything unless things turned more violent as smacks on the bum weren't 'abuse' to them. Just one commenter said that they would be willing to get involved. Hitting children has fallen out of favour in a major way in recent years and was effectively banned under the Irish law in 2015. Anyone who hits a child can now be prosecuted for doing so. Ex-Children’s Minister James Reilly, who approved the change, claimed it sent "a strong message which will lead to a cultural change across Irish society that corporal punishment is wrong." Some criticised the move at the time, arguing the state was over-stepping the make by policing parenting, but the negative effects of hitting kids have been proven. Research has linked corporal punishment to adult mental health issues and antisocial behaviour. All that said, parenting is something sensitive and very personal - so would you ever intervene if you saw someone else smacking their child? Let us know your thoughts in the Facebook comments or join the conversation on Twitter.