Guangzhou beggars risk losing custody of their children

Parents who coax their children into begging will be stripped of custody, according to a new regulation aimed at assisting street children that was approved Monday by the government of Guangzhou, Guangdong Province.

If parents continue taking their children under 18 to beg in spite of repeated admonishments, rescue stations can petition courts to cancel their guardian status, and the courts can appoint new custodians for the underage children, according to the new regulation, the Guangzhou Daily reported Tuesday.

A new system will be set up to guarantee rescue stations have the ability to act as legal representatives to protect the rights of minors, states the new regulation.

The State Council, China's cabinet, released guiding opinions on protecting minors' rights in 2011, stating that social services bodies have the right to petition courts to remove children from the custody of their parents who refuse to fulfill custodial responsibility to their children. This provides the legal basis for Guangzhou's new regulation.

Zhang Wenjuan, a lawyer specializing in legal aid services offered to minors, told the Global Times that it's good to see Guangzhou take the step toward attempting to assist minors by stripping parents of custody, but the procedures to disqualify parents should be very rigorous and compassionate.

"Custody disqualification should be a last resort," said Zhang. "Government departments and agencies should provide compassionate services and intervene before finally proceeding to that stage. Authorities should be fully informed of the reason why parents take their children to beg, offer a training session on how to take good care of their children, and supervise parents' behavior to see whether a disqualification is truly needed."

Noting that Guangzhou's new regulation states the disqualification will be implemented after repeated admonishments don't work, Zhang said the process is a little too general.

She emphasized that the legal procedures are ultimately most important and should be based on children's best interest.

The regulations approved Monday also let children who stay in rescue stations receive education with the same rights as other children. Those staying in rescue stations for two years or more will be transferred to social welfare agencies.