In some legal systems parental authority belongs exclusively to the father; in some of these countries, in the event of loss of such authority, it does not pass automatically to the mother; and in some instances, on dissolution of marriage, custody of the children is awarded to the father regardless of the merits of the case.
In Ethiopia, for example, parental rights are customarily exercised by the father in any marriage. The natural guardian is the father, if he himself is not under guardianship, the next person would be one appointed guardian by the father, next the eldest brother, then the grandfather, the parental uncle, and then the parental nephew.