Dusty
2009-12-06 13:15:09 UTC
German father strikes a blow for single dads
04/12/09 07:31 CET
An unmarried German man has struck a blow for fatherhood, winning a landmark
legal decision on his right to see his daughter. The European Court of Human
Rights ruled in favour of Horst Zaunegger, whose former partner refused him
access to their teenage daughter when the couple split up and she moved
away.
Under current German law, unmarried fathers can be refused access by the
mother. Zaunegger said: "For me this is clearly a violation of human rights
because, as an unmarried father, I'm being treated as a second-class parent.
There is no justification for that. I'm a responsible father, I've proved
this but I have no access to joint custody." Single German fathers must pay
child support, but can make no decisions and can be prevented from seeing
their children. Child custody is generally split between married couples.
The law has been under increasing pressure, and in Berlin the justice
minister called for a fundamental review of the rights of unmarried fathers.
Figures from 2008 show that every third German child is born out of wedlock.
Copyright © 2009 euro news
04/12/09 07:31 CET
An unmarried German man has struck a blow for fatherhood, winning a landmark
legal decision on his right to see his daughter. The European Court of Human
Rights ruled in favour of Horst Zaunegger, whose former partner refused him
access to their teenage daughter when the couple split up and she moved
away.
Under current German law, unmarried fathers can be refused access by the
mother. Zaunegger said: "For me this is clearly a violation of human rights
because, as an unmarried father, I'm being treated as a second-class parent.
There is no justification for that. I'm a responsible father, I've proved
this but I have no access to joint custody." Single German fathers must pay
child support, but can make no decisions and can be prevented from seeing
their children. Child custody is generally split between married couples.
The law has been under increasing pressure, and in Berlin the justice
minister called for a fundamental review of the rights of unmarried fathers.
Figures from 2008 show that every third German child is born out of wedlock.
Copyright © 2009 euro news