"the child is still young" is not an excuse to shirk responsibility
2024-09-18
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original title: "the child is still young" is not an excuse to shirk responsibility
it is reported that the jiawang court of xuzhou city recently enforced an effective infringement judgment. in the end, the parents who had been unwilling to take responsibility had to fulfill the judgment and make compensation. in august 2022, 9-year-old xiaoqiang was playing in the community, painting on a car with a stone, causing obvious scratches on the vehicle's hood, left front door, and rear fender. after the car owner mr. zhang returned home and discovered the situation, he retrieved the surveillance footage at home and found that it was done by his neighbor xiaoqiang. later, mr. zhang found xiaoqiang's parents, but the other party always shirked the responsibility by saying "the child is still young" and "why are you arguing with a child". after mr. zhang sued, he was finally awarded financial compensation after mediation by the court.
when faced with the troubles caused by naughty children, some parents always come up with various reasons, such as "he is still a child" and "how can you be bothered with him", etc. in the final analysis, they are unwilling to take on the responsibility of supervision. it is true that children are not yet adults and their intellectual development is not perfect. it is inevitable that they make some mistakes. we cannot hold them to the standards of adults, but this does not mean that parents, as guardians, can turn a blind eye and remain indifferent to the troubles caused by their children.
from a legal perspective, if a child infringes upon the rights of others and causes personal and property damage to others, parents have an unshirkable legal responsibility. our civil code clearly stipulates that parents have the obligation to support, educate and protect their minor children; if a person with no or limited civil capacity causes damage to others, the guardian shall bear the tort liability, and the guardian’s tort liability can be mitigated if the guardian fulfills his guardianship duties. back to the above dispute, xiaoqiang "took a stone to paint on a car, causing obvious scratches on the hood, left front door, rear fender, etc. of the vehicle", and his parents were unaware of it and did not restrain him, and it is obvious that they failed to fulfill their guardianship responsibilities. since there was a fault first, it cannot be mitigated when the court determines the compensation liability.
when children get into trouble, parents cannot use the excuse that "the children are still young" to shirk their responsibilities as parents. from legal provisions to judicial decisions, parents' disciplinary and guardianship responsibilities are marked, and they cannot be evaded by playing tricks and denying. the family education promotion law stipulates that "parents or other guardians of minors are responsible for implementing family education" and "parents or other guardians should establish a sense of responsibility that the family is the first classroom and parents are the first teachers." parents who are irresponsible and evade their responsibilities will only make their children go further and further on the wrong path. when children do something wrong, parents do not shirk responsibility or perfunctorily shirk their responsibilities. they will establish the image of parents who are brave enough to take responsibility and correct their mistakes. this is also a profound lesson in rule of law and moral education, which is beneficial to the healthy growth of children.
(author: liu tingting, associate professor of air force medical university)
source: china education news
