Protecting the Rights of Children Without Parental Care in Egypt:

A Review from the Perspectives of Islamic Law and UN Instruments

Fady Habashy

 

Abstract: Children without parental care include children deprived of their family such as orphans, abandoned children, children separated from their family, and those in institutional care. States are obliged, in accordance with their national laws, to provide special protection and ensure alternative care for these children through, for example, adoption or ‘kafalah’ under Islamic law or placement in orphanages. This note explicates the UN instruments that require the protection of children including the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which stipulates that adoption is a form of alternative care. It explores the concept of adoption under the perspectives of Islamic law and clarifies the current practices of ‘kafalah’ among Muslims. Finally, the note elucidates the legal and administrative framework for adoption in Egypt. The analysis provides bases for developing a national strategy for alternative care of children in Egypt.