Fighting for women’s inheritance rights! - Justice Centres Uganda

Fighting for women’s inheritance rights!

This story is about 70-year-old Lusiya, a widow and mother of three children aged between 18 and 26. Her husband died intestate in 2006 and the clan leaders, who at the time were considered to be in charge of his family left the deceased’s estate for Lusiya since her children were still minors. When the children came of age, the clan leaders divided the estate and distributed the estate amongst only the children while excluding her.

Her son Matthew was given two pieces of land while the two daughters were given one piece of land each. Despite getting the lion’s share, Matthew went further to claim the land his mother (Lusiya) had purchased with her own money after the demise of her husband. He also harassed his sisters by wanting to take over their shares of land. All this was happening while Matthew was staying in Lusiya’s house.

The family members made attempts to resolve the issue however Matthew proved to be stubborn and always resorted to violence. The violence escalated to a point where Matthew was sending death threats to his mother and this is when Lusiya sought redress at Bulireya Police.

The Child & Family Protection Unit (CFPU) – Bundibugyo Police Station referred the matter to JCU Bundibugyo for mediation where the parties were sensitised about succession law and property rights. The mediation turned out to be successful and a memorandum of understanding was signed where Matthew agreed to leave his mother’s home since he was above 18, stop laying claim on her land and also desist from perpetrating violence against her.

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