Rights of children

(1) All children, regardless of the circumstances of their birth, are entitled to equal treatment before the law, and the best interests and welfare of children shall be a primary consideration in all decisions affecting them. [11 of 2010] (2) All children shall have the right to a given name and a family name and the right to a nationality. (3) Children have the right to know, and to be raised by, their parents. (4) All children shall be entitled to reasonable maintenance from their parents, whether such parents are married, unmarried or divorced, and from their guardians; and, in addition, all children, and particularly orphans, children with disabilities and other children in situations of disadvantage shall be entitled to live in safety and security and, where appropriate, to State assistance. [11 of 2010] (5) Children are entitled to be protected from economic exploitation or any treatment, work or punishment that is, or is likely to— (a) be hazardous; (b) interfere with their education; or (c) be harmful to their health or to their physical, mental or spiritual or social development. [11 of 2010] (6) A child shall be a person under the age of eighteen years. [11 of 2010; 15 of 2017]