I set up policies specifically designed to reduce any risk that arose, any risk that we could identify, and to ensure our policies and procedures were fair. I did this not because I am dismissive of negative experiences, but explicitly because I want to ensure, as much as is humanly possible they do not happen.
It is important to remember that other forms of punishment can have negative effects on students as well. I have boys, for example, who are more likely to be negatively effected by being given a detention than they are by being given the cane. The existence of these students means we can’t just take a simplistic solution of abolishing corporal punishment and acting like that means we’ve solved the problem of negative effects.