There is a view that if a child commits a crime, the delinquent’s parents should be punished. While the statement may have merit, I argue that children have to answer for their actions before the law.
The first reason why children are responsible for their actions is that if they are not judged properly for their malicious intentions, they may think that they can continue breaking the law. In fact, in countries where the law sides with young offenders, the rate of juvenile delinquency, especially among adolescents, is significantly high compared to that in other countries. This, in turn, shows that punishments for children are necessary.
Another reason is that parents cannot control their children and protect them from other external factors, such as peers and the like. When a pupil is sent to school, their parents cannot keep them safe from such influences. This, in turn, means that students may start learning bad habits from their schoolmates or peers.
However, it does not mean that parents do not carry any responsibilities. Indeed, they shape children’s minds, and children begin acquiring bad and good behaviour from them. For this reason, they should be more conscious and cautious about how they raise the younger generation.
In conclusion, while some think that parents must stand before the law for their offspring’s crimes, I believe that children have to carry all of the consequences of their actions. Only through mutual efforts of parents and schools can children be raised in a healthy environment.