This statement offends many people but in law, it is correct. Parents do not own children. They are custodians. That difference is the reason the court can step into a family matter without asking permission.
In law, a child is not property. A child is a rights-holder. So while parents have authority, that authority is not absolute. This is why certain things trigger legal intervention.
When a child is abused, the state does not say,
“It’s a family matter.”
It steps in.
When a child is neglected, starved, denied education, or exposed to harm, the law does not wait for consent. It acts.
When decisions made by parents endanger a child’s physical, emotional, or psychological wellbeing, those decisions can be questioned, reviewed, and overturned.
Not because the law hates parents but because the law places the best interest of the child above adult control. This is the part many people struggle with.
Love alone is not enough. Good intentions do not excuse harm. Cultural authority does not override safety. Biological connection does not cancel responsibility. That is why:
Abuse attracts state interventio n
Neglect has legal consequences
“I’m the parent” is not a defence
Courts intervene because children cannot always speak for themselves. The law becomes their voice.
Quietly.
Firmly.
Without apology.
So when you hear that the court has stepped into a family issue involving a child, understand this. It is not an attack on parenting. It is a protection of childhood and in law, protecting the right of the chid is not negotiable
I remain your favorite Lawyer. Confidence Aribibia
CHILDREN DO NOT BELONG TO PARENTS BY CONFIDENCE ARIBIBIA
