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Reevaluating African Women’S Inheritance Rights In Indigenous Customary Law And Statutory National Law, Mallory Matheson, Ashleigh Heinze

Student Works

When indigenous customary law violates women’s rights, how can national legal systems ensure justice for women while respecting regional cultural sovereignty? Which entities, if any, hold the jurisdiction to enforce compliance with statutory national law--and should they? I examine the tension between indigenous customary and statutory national law on women’s inheritance rights in Botswana, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. I argue that grassroots efforts to induce gender-based societal change must develop in tandem with institutional and legal reformation, as gender-egalitarian sociocultural foundations will best incentivize compliance with women’s inheritance rights. I propose three key tasks: mobilize women to achieve legal awareness, secure …