IN recent years, a troubling misconception has taken root in some homes and schools across Zimbabwe: that children now have rights but no responsibilities.
This half-truth is not only legally incorrect — it is socially dangerous. When rights are detached from responsibilities, protection is distorted into permissiveness and guidance is mistaken for oppression.
The principle is simple and enduring: there are no rights without responsibilities.
Understanding children’s rights in light of the ‘evolving capacities’ principle
The principle is articulated in Article 5 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It is a core principle of children’s rights on their ability to make decisions, exercise rights, and assume responsibilities progressively with age, maturity and experience.
In children’s rights law, this principle requires adults, institutions and the State to respect increasing autonomy as the child grows, provide guidance appropriate to age and maturity, gradually transfer decision-making powers to the child and balance protection with participation and responsibility.
The concept recognises that children are neither passive dependants nor fully autonomous adults. They are rights-holders whose capacity for independent judgment develops over time.
Some of the key elements of this principle include progressive autonomy (for example, participation in decisions about education, health, environment), diminishing parental control as maturity increases and shared decision-making between adults and the child.
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The Constitutional mandate: Rights with a purpose
Section 81 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe outlines a comprehensive list of rights, including the right to a name, a birth certificate and protection from exploitative labour and maltreatment. Crucially, section 81(2) mandates that a child’s best interests are paramount in every matter concerning the child.
It operates alongside section 19, which compels the State to adopt policies that ensure children have shelter, nutrition and health care, but also emphasises the role of the family.
The legal philosophy here is not to create autonomous islands out of children, but to integrate them into a protective family unit where rights are nurtured. The law implies that while a child has the right to education, there is an inherent responsibility to attend school and participate in the learning process to realise that right.
The African Charter: The blueprint for balance
While global instruments like the Convention on the Rights of the Child focus heavily on individual liberties, the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child to which Zimbabwe is a signatory, is unique in its explicit inclusion of duties. Article 31 of the African Charter serves as a vital corrective to the Western individualistic model. It stipulates that every child has responsibilities towards their family, society, the State and other legally
recognised communities. These include:
- a) The duty to respect.
- b) The duty to place their physical and intellectual abilities at the service of the community.
- c) The duty to preserve and strengthen African cultural values.
By domesticating these principles, Zimbabwean law acknowledges that a child’s identity is inextricably linked to their community.
A child who demands the right to expression must, under the Charter’s spirit, also exercise the responsibility to express themselves in a manner that does not violate the dignity or rights of others.
The responsibilities articulated here must never be used to abuse children or cause them to abuse other people’s rights.
While a child has a responsibility to learn within a family unit, adult caregivers should not end up abusing the child’s rights. For for example, there is a vast difference between child work and child labour. Child work is good, but child labour is a violation of a child’s rights.
The perils of a rights-only perspective
When the legal and social systems emphasise rights to the exclusion of responsibilities, several negatives emerge. These include;
The erosion of the social fabric
In Zimbabwean culture, the "Ubuntu" philosophy dictates that "I am because we are." A lopsided focus on rights can foster a sense of entitlement that ignores the collective well-being of a child, leading to a breakdown in the traditional support systems that have historically protected children.
Discipline and authority crisis
Many educators and parents in Zimbabwe have expressed concern that children now use rights as a shield to engage in deviance, such as substance abuse or indiscipline, misinterpreting the protection from corporal punishment as an immunity from all forms of correction.
Vulnerability through autonomy
Teaching a child that they have the right to privacy without the responsibility of transparency with guardians can inadvertently expose them to online predators or harmful peer pressures, as parents feel legally disarmed from exercising necessary supervision.
Moving forward
The recent Children’s Amendment Act (2023) in Zimbabwe seeks to bridge these gaps by further aligning domestic law with the African Charter. It emphasises parental responsibilities alongside parental rights, reinforcing the idea that the parent-child relationship is a reciprocal bond of duties.
To protect the Zimbabwean child, the legal system must move beyond the courtroom and into the classroom and the home. Legal literacy programmes should not only teach a child that they have a right to be heard but also teach them the responsibility of listening. They must know they have a right to protection from labour, but also a responsibility to contribute to the household chores and the upkeep of their environment. A right to protect from sexual abuse and exploitation has the attendant duty to report it as soon as it happens to allow smooth corrective measures.
The law in Zimbabwe provides a robust framework for the protection of children, but its success depends on balance. Rights provide the wings for a child to fly toward their potential, but responsibilities are the coordinates that ensure they fly in a direction that benefits both themselves and the nation. By harmonising the Constitution with the duties outlined in the African Charter, Zimbabwe can raise a generation that is not only empowered by its rights, but also grounded by its responsibilities.
