THE Children's Amendment Act of 2002 comes into effect on Monday, abolishing illegitimacy and making both parents responsible for the care and support of minors.

In announcing the Act, Health Minister Patrice Minors said it would end the "discriminatory practices" of the Legitimacy Act 1933 and the Affiliation Act 1976.

"Whereas the Legitimacy Act sanctions illegitimacy, the Affiliation Act restricted unmarried mothers to pursue exclusively, financial support from the fathers of their children," Mrs. Minors said.

"The child's father was to have no substantive connection in law to the child in life or death, and shared no parental relationship, rights, or responsibilities for the child."

The new Act is designed to correct the inadequacies of the Illegitimate Children's Act of 1947, which saw unmarried parents suffer unequal treatment under the law, to married parents, the Minister added.

"Unmarried fathers, for example, were given a separate distinction under the law and were called putative fathers. A putative father was barred from parental custody even if the mother died. In instances where he managed to get custody of the child, he could not apply to the courts for support, as married fathers could.

"In fact, after an amendment to the Affiliation Act, putative fathers were able to apply to the courts for access, but access was so loosely defined that it was often at the whim of the custodian even after the court ordered it."

As well, Mrs. Minors added, the previous law failed single fathers as it did not recognise them as parents at all.

"Putative fathers had no parental rights or responsibilities to help mothers protect their children from harm," she said. "Mothers were unassisted with the educational, religious, or any other aspect of their children's upbringing.

"In doing so, the Affiliation Act 1976 became complicit in creating 'single motherhood' and undermining the integrity of the family to the detriment of unmarried mothers and fathers and their children."

In summary, the Act aims to:

Abolish the concept of illegitimacy as it applies to children and ensure that all have equal rights to the care and support of both parents by repelling the Illegitimacy Act 1933 and the Affiliation Act 1976.

Remove gender discrimination from the law regarding parental rights and responsibilities.

Recognise overseas determination of parentage for all children.

Grant equal custodial rights and access to parents.

Ensure that both parents are equally accountable for meeting the financial support and needs of the child.

Provide for effective enforcement of violations of the Act.

Make necessary amendments to existing legislation to achieve the foregoing objectives.

The Act, the Minister added, would allow all children to enjoy the same status in law.

"This will in turn provide for the involvement of all parents in the upbringing of children and allow for the sharing of rights and responsibilities conducive to each child's positive development. Bermuda's children deserve no less," she said.