My understanding is that in the socialist countries, like former Soviet Union, Cuba, East Germany for example, the children were considered property of the Stat

My understanding is that in the socialist countries, like former Soviet Union, Cuba, East Germany for example, the children were considered property of the State and parents had only limited rights over their children. Obviously, in the child abuse cases, the parents will lose custody and for a good reason. But in socialist countries, the State is very heavy handed and parents could easily lose custody because of mistakes or various misunderstandings. The checks and balances are gone in a fully socialist system and once it goes the wrong way, it's very hard to correct.