Parental Responsibilities to Children in the Republic of Kosovo

In: Iliria international review, Volume 4, Issue 1, p. 217

Abstract

For a long time, in Albanian customary law, parental responsibilities were an exclusive competency of fathers. In positive law, especially with the reform of the legal system in the Republic of Kosovo, now both parents are fully equal in exercising parental responsibilities. Children are the future of any society, and therefore, their upraising, education and proper welfare of children is an objective and responsibility not only for the parents, but also of societal and state institutions. Although parent-child relations incorporate moral, biological and legal elements, the absolute power of parents must be shared between parents and proper social and educational policies, in the heart of which are always the best interests of the child.Kosovo has already adopted a complete legal framework, approximated to the standards of the European Union and international instruments which clearly provide on the rights of the child and responsibilities of parents and institutions in enjoying such rights. Within the range of this new legal framework, we make an effort of addressing parental responsibilities, which are exercised in terms of personality of children, and derive as a result of personal non-material relations. Our work is focused on a study of parental responsibilities in terms of giving a personal name, healthy development, education and upraising. We have also analysed several court rulings related to the rights of the child and responsibilities of parents in enjoying such rights, which we believe are to enrich and render the paper more interesting.