THE WOMANS RIGHTS FORUM

NATIONAL WOMAN'S RIGHTS FORUM Former Speaker of the National Assembly on Monday pressed concerned authorities to fast track repeal of discriminatory laws--the Marriage Act-1971 and Inheritance Law—in a move to enhance access to justice and protection of women and girls rights. “The two laws discriminates and deprive women and girls of their rights…but I wondering why the government is still dilly-dallying to repeal these bad laws,” said former Speaker, Anna Makinda, as she officially launched the first Women Rights’ Forum, organized by the Legal Services Facility (LSF)—a basket funding mechanism which provides financial and technical support to legal aid organizations operating in Tanzania. According to Makinda, repeal of the Marriage Act and inheritance was a crucial step in the protection of women and girls rights--to inheritance, own land, and other valuable properties and halt massive discrimination against the vulnerable social groups. Current inheritance law 1963 provides “lions-inheritance shares” to male children compared to “peanut share” given widows and female children after the death of husband—something which Makinda says “is unfair and unacceptable.” “During my tenure as MPs and later Speaker, we managed to fast track amendments to Land acts-1999 that paved the way for more ordinary citizens in urban and rural areas, including women, to have access to own land,” she said, calling activists and stakeholders to join hands and push for the review or repeal of marriage Act and inheritance law. “We should forge ahead, engaging the government in constructive negotiations to ensure that the marriage and inheritance laws are reviewed for the welfare of women and girls and society at large.” Repeal of the respective laws, she noted, would rescue thousands of women and children who are suffering due to domestic and forms of violence which are rampant in the country. Former speaker described re-activation of paralegals, especially after inception of the Legal Services Facility (LSF) as instrumental in the national crusade against women and girls violence and by extension, protection of their rights. Makinda challenged women and human rights organizations to step up women rights educative programmes—at secondary and primary schools levels--as a path to enhance broader public understanding on women issues. For his part, Legal Service Facility (LSF) Chief Executive Officer, Kees Groenendijk said that the facility strives to increase access to justice, in particular for women, through a legal empowerment approach. “A first step toward legal empowerment for women is our emphasis on human rights and legal education to women individually or through various newly-created or existing groups like Vicoba groups,” said LSF CEO. Presently, according to him, paralegals recruited through LSF funding, work on a regular basis with around 1000 women groups all over the country “a number that is expected to grow considerably, while annually more than 200, 000 Tanzanian are reached with legal education of which 60 per cent are women.” He said the facility is struggling to ensure that disadvantaged people, in particular women, access justice through quality services provided by around 4,500 paralegals spread across all districts countrywide. Speaking at the forum, Tike Mwambipile, a representative of women organizations and stakeholder, appealed to the government to set up a special unit/department within the country legal systems that would be dealing with marriage and family matters. “This will speed up handling of women and girls issues and problems, and enable them to promptly/timely access justice,” noted an activist.