Is a grandparent automatically eligible to exercise the functions of head in a family system?

Under Maltese law, this is one of the most popular posts voluntarily occupied without a legal job description.

It is a common perception that grandparents do not assume personal liability as they are not holders of vested rights which could be legally claimed for the significant role they play. Notwithstanding, article 7(2) of the Civil Code, Chapter 16 of the laws of Malta, holds ascendants liable to provide for the maintenance and education of the children when such is not provided by the parents.

However, the legislator failed to specify when parents are considered to be acting in default. As a result, many grandparents feel exploited, sometimes even physically and psychologically abused by their own children and later on, their grandchildren too. The legal obligation of the latter (article 8 of the same law) to care for and maintain their parents or other ascendants in need, should be equally fulfilled.

Voluntarily, most grandparents fulfil this function as substitutes in the absence of parents and live up to the expectations and standards as dictated by some parents.

Still, one cannot generalise and assume that all grandparents are in a position to provide for their grandchildren. On the other hand, there are those who may have sufficient means to support their grandchildren and choose not to be involved. In such cases it is futile to generalise whether the underlying reasons may be considered valid since the law is silent on the fundamental aspects leading to the determination of the liability evoked.    

At One Voice Malta we often here claim that a grandparent would not have cared for their own children. Consequently, parents question, what right to they have to be included into a family unit upon the arrival of a new born grandchild? These are very subjective stand points and the validity of such claims cannot be underestimated.

From an objective point of view, one may consider that there are situations or life-styles in which grandparents may have been lured into at an earlier stage in their lives and at some point or another, often at grandparenthood stage, their strong sense of remorse triggers the system.

I started a collaborative platform #togetherwithonevoice, to provide a safe space for all generations to sound their concerns on disputes between family members. 

Various studies have confirmed that as grandchildren grow older, they reap the benefits of the emotional and spiritual apart from the material wealth acquired from their grandparents.

Are grandparents entitled to commit to their family’s needs and do their utmost to make up for their own mistakes?

On the other hand, what about the rights of Grandparents that do not fail to live up to their family’s expectations and are denied access to their grandchildren without a valid reason?

As an advocate for children’s rights at One Voice Malta, I am pleased to have supported the Rights of Grandparents and Grandchildren from the very start when my parents, Philip and Carmen Chircop, founded Nanniet Malta / Grandparents Malta Foundation.  

Unlike what is generally perceived, one does not need to qualify for a senior citizen status to become a grandparent. Therefore, it is not their vulnerable state of being that should matter most when their rights as grandparents are threatened but their direct contribution towards our Maltese economy with the provision of free child care, accommodation on a full board basis, education and baby-sitting services which most grandparents are subjected to offer when parents become the vulnerable persons themselves. 

It is not merely in our legal processes that international legal principles aimed to protect minors should be invoked. The determination of what is in the child’s best interests is a process which must be incorporated in all our decisions as parents, grandparents, decision makers, educators, media service users and providers, Governmental authorities, legislators, the judiciary and the society at large.

The person/s vested with parental authority and the primary care of their children is/are duty bound to take decisions in their child's best interests.

However, as the Court of Appeal concluded recently, when unofficially parental obligations are transferred on to Grandparents, since most of us (parents) conveniently do not manage our busy schedules, we would be acknowledging that the concerns of grandparents matter, their financial aid becomes handy and their rights to access their grandchildren should be given due consideration. This landmark case accentuates the fact that with every right there comes an obligation.

It is of great satisfaction when our senior citizens' rights are not only heard but enforced by our legal system. In the process, we will seek to ensure that the legal obligations are fulfilled in accordance to the international legal principles aimed to protect and give minors access to justice. These must be transposed in our law, enforced by the authorities and revised as necessary to ensure the implementation of the right of the child to maintain on a regular basis a personal and direct contact with both his or her parents, unless that is contrary to his or her interests.

To advocate the rights of the child further, we embarked on an initiative #togetherwithonevoice on access rights to voice the concerns of separated parents and other family members claiming access to minors within their family unit, we sought the collaboration of the Ministry for the Family, Children' Rights and Social Solidarity, the Foundation for Social Welfare Services, the Commissioner for Children, the Malta Police Force, the Grandparents Malta Foundation and MaltaCan Association. 

Our specialisation in law seeks the effective implementation of the Principle of the best interests of the Child. We are inclined to approach disputes between family members from a different standpoint. This is what makes the difference in a child's life. This is when the settling of disputes within a family cohort takes a reasonable turn.

 

Dr Lynn Faure Chircop - Advocate for Children's Rights & Youth Justice.