Rédaction Africa Links 24 with lexpress
Published on 2024-02-24 02:35:00
In family law, children must benefit from special protection. Purpose of Law No. 2007- 023 of August 20, 2007 on the rights and protection of children. According to Article 2 of this law, “A child means any human being under the age of 18.” Parental authority is defined as the set of rights and duties that parents have towards their child. It aims to ensure the well-being, safety, physical and moral integrity, as well as the education of the child until their majority or emancipation through marriage.
As provided for in Article 16 of Law No. 2007-023, “Parental authority is exercised jointly by both parents if they are married.” and Article 17 adds that: “If the father and mother are not married and paternity is established with respect to both parents, parental authority is exercised jointly by them.”
For the usual acts of parental authority, such as accompanying to school, enrolling in extracurricular activities, or accompanying to the pediatrician, each parent is deemed to act with the consent of the other, especially towards third parties acting in good faith. But unusual acts such as traveling abroad require the prior authorization of both parents.
Parental authority should not be confused with child custody. Child custody is granted by a judge to one of the two parents when they are divorced or in the process of divorce. The parent who does not have custody of the child retains parental authority as long as it has not been revoked by the Juvenile Court.
Parental authority should also not be confused with guardianship, which is an authority exercised by a person other than the child’s parents.
Each parent can voluntarily delegate the exercise of parental authority to the other parent or to a third party, or even to an institution to whom they wish to entrust the child. In this case, the delegation must be recorded by a decision of the Juvenile Court.
There are often cases of children who go to study abroad and need their father and mother to concede parental authority to a relative (uncle or aunt) living in the destination of the child.
And Article 22 of the aforementioned law states: “The exercise of parental authority is lost or temporarily deprived of one of the parents who is in one of the following cases:
– If they are unable to express their will, due to their incapacity, absence, distance, or any other reason;
– If they have consented to a delegation of their rights as established by a court decision;
– If they have been convicted under various heads of “abandonment of family”, until they have resumed their obligations for at least six months;
– If a judgment of total or partial withdrawal of parental authority has been pronounced against them.”
Before specifying that “The absence or insufficiency of material resources is not a sufficient reason for the withdrawal or suspension of parental authority.”
The Juvenile Court is the competent judicial authority in the event of a dispute concerning the exercise of parental authority. Measures concerning a minor child always have an urgent character. Therefore, Juvenile Court judges sit before the family court and make orders that are directly enforceable.
In all cases, it is always recommended to consult a lawyer for your family matters, especially when it comes to the rights of your minor children.
Article written by Maître Salohiniaina Soaviniavo Raherintsoa, trainee lawyer.
Read the original article(French) on lexpress.mg
