Parents can be charged for neglecting children: Kwa

PARENTS of children under the age of 14 wondering around like orphans or charged under Juvenile Acts can face the law under the Criminal Act, Constitutional Law Reforms Committee Secretary Dr Eric Kwa says.
“We have laws there to charge parents who are neglecting their responsibilities, resulting in their children being involved in crimes or wondering around,” Kwa said following ABC reports published on Monday about homeless children in Port Moresby sleeping in toilets.
Section 362 of the Criminal Code Act states: “A parent of a child under the age of 14 years who is able to maintain the child and who wilfully and without lawful or reasonable cause deserts the child and leaves it without means of support is guilty of a misdemeanour. Penalty is imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year.”
Kwa said: “There are provisions in the Criminal Code Act that talk about parents responsibilities, if police can investigate they can charge the parents of children who are charged under Juvenile Acts as well.
“There is no enforcement or lack of enforcement because of lack of knowledge by the police officers.”
Kwa said apart from that, there were many other laws that protected children which police included when writing charges.