From Protection to Rights: The Historical Evolution of Child Protection in Western Legal Systems

Abstract

This article examines the historical evolution of the legal protection of children within Western legal traditions, tracing the transformations in their legal status from subjection to parental authority to recognition as independent rights-holders. It explores the gradual transformation of the concept of child protection, which expanded from the family and societal spheres to the international sphere, beginning with the 1924 Geneva Declaration and culminating in the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child. It further examines how this transformation contributed to reshaping child protection around the rights of the child, the principle of the best interests of the child, and the child's participation. The study is structured around three main sections. The first examines the transition from parental authority to the emergence of legal protection for the child. The second addresses the development and consolidation of international recognition of children's rights. The third focuses on the reconfiguration and expansion of child protection, particularly in the digital environment.