Legal and Moral Rights Of A Parent

Parents are the first teachers in the life of a child. All over the world, parents have certain legal and moral rights that help them in the upbringing of their child.Parents have the right to custody and control over their child, the right to cooperation and obedience from their child and the right to sue the person who injures their child.

The right to custody and control over your child essentially means that as a parent you can make the important decisions about your child’s life. That is you, as a parent, can decide on matters such as, where your child will live, with whom he or she will live, the day to day activities of the child, what school he or she will attend, when the child needs medical care, and what, if any, religion he or she will practice. The right to cooperation and obedience from your child entitles you to the right to discipline your child in a non-abusive and non-neglectful manner.

Authority, responsibility and accountability of the child are the moral obligations of a parent and accordingly, parents are accountable for the deeds of their children. They are responsible and accountable for the behaviour that the child in their care exhibits to the society. Parents have a huge duty to their children to give them the best possible start in life. We decide to bring our sons and daughters into this world. Therefore, we are obliged to teach them the correct way to live. We should engender in them a sense of right and wrong in a loving environment. From an early age, we should let them know firmly when they have done something wrong – equally, we should praise them when they do well.