The right to identity of children and adolescents in the face of state guardianship: reality of Latin America

Purpose Identity is a fundamental right that is particularly important in childhood, as it is established immediately after birth, giving the child the surnames that determine kinship and, therefore, their identity. However, the problem arises when this right is not adequately protected, which means that information related to a person's name is not verified against biological truth—a widespread practice in Latin America—which can lead to a violation of the right to identity, given the discrepancy between biological truth and legal identity. This is repeated in the Civil Codes of the following countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, the Dominican Republic, Uruguay and Venezuela. In Ecuador, it has even led to rulings by courts that formed the basis for the 2015 reform of the Civil Code, according to which this act is unchallengeable. This confirms that there is a lack of state protection regarding the veracity of identity, which even extends to digital identity, with unverified data being entered into platforms. Due to the lack of verification, biological inconsistency could affect the essence of the individual and disturb their psyche. Design/methodology/approach The methodology of the present work obeys the following order: documentary research technique and documentary review guide instrument. Because it is based on existing doctrine on the subject, in order to contrast it with the principles of identity and state protection. Findings Based on these considerations, the general objective of this paper is to determine the state guardianship exercised by the State to guarantee the right to identity of children and adolescents. To address this issue, several questions arise: What regulations guarantee identity? What public policies does the state propose to guarantee identity? How does legal paternity differ from biological paternity? To answer these questions, it was necessary to establish specific concepts, including identity, state guardianship, kinship and family rights. Originality/value The value of this article is based on supporting a different idea about the importance of the right to identity and highlighting the shortcomings of state protection at the time of its creation, which is why the contribution consists of offering a different perspective.