Women's Property Rights Research Articles

Women's property rights equality and entrepreneurial activity

AbstractEntrepreneurship is shaped by institutions. However, past research has largely assumed that everyone has equal property rights even though women often operate under a different property rights structure and have fewer legal rights than men. We fill a gap in the literature by examining how the property rights of women impacts female entrepreneurship in a panel countries using data on property rights from the Economic Freedom of the World dataset and data on entrepreneurship from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor. We find that better protection of property rights for women is associated with more the female entrepreneurship relative to male entrepreneurship.

Intimate partner violence against adolescent girls: regional and national prevalence estimates and associated country-level factors

Intimate partner violence is a serious public health problem and negatively affects short-term and long-term health, development, and wellbeing of adolescent girls. Global estimates from WHO have shown that adolescent girls aged 15-19 years experience high rates of intimate partner violence. We aimed to estimate the lifetime and past-year prevalence and patterns of physical or sexual intimate partner violence against adolescent girls by male partners across 161 countries and areas, and to examine the country-level factors, including the prevalence of child marriage, associated with the lifetime and past-year prevalence of intimate partner violence in this age group. These analyses used the 2018 global, regional, and country estimates on intimate partner violence published by WHO and economic, social, and political metadata from subject-specific databases. Drawing on data from the WHO Global Database on Prevalence of Violence Against Women, we used hierarchical Bayesian modelling techniques to estimate lifetime and past-year prevalence of physical or sexual (or both) intimate partner violence against adolescent girls aged 15-19 years by country. Linear regression methods were used to examine contextual social, economic, and political factors associated with intimate partner violence against adolescent girls in the 101 countries (lifetime prevalence) and 105 countries (past-year prevalence) for which these metadata were available. The estimated global prevalence of physical or sexual intimate partner violence against ever-partnered adolescent girls aged 15-19 years was 24% (95% uncertainty interval 21-28) in their lifetime and 16% (14-19) in the past year. Prevalence varied greatly across countries and regions, with lifetime prevalence ranging from 6% (3-11) in Georgia to 49% (35-64) in Papua New Guinea. Overall, the prevalence of both lifetime (154 countries) and past-year (157 countries) intimate partner violence against adolescent girls was higher in low-income and lower-middle-income countries and regions than in high-income countries and regions. Countries with higher rates of female secondary school enrolment and those with inheritance laws that are more gender-equal had lower prevalence of intimate partner violence against adolescent girls. Lower-income countries and societies with a high prevalence of child marriage had higher prevalence of physical or sexual intimate partner violence against adolescent girls. Our findings highlight the widespread prevalence of intimate partner violence against adolescent girls across the globe and its relationship with country-level contextual factors. They emphasise the need for promoting and ensuring policies and programmes that increase and ensure gender equality. Countries should strive to provide secondary education for all girls, ensure equal property rights for women, eliminate discriminatory gender norms, and address harmful practices such as child marriage. UN Women-WHO Joint Programme on Strengthening Violence Against Women Data funded by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office and the UNDP-UNFPA-UNICEF-WHO-World Bank Special Programme of Research, Development, and Research Training in Human Reproduction.

Rights of Widow under inheritance of Property: An Analytical Study

The link between property rights, legal frameworks, and gender equality is examined in the paper "Rights of Widow under Inheritance of Property: In their analytical paper titled “A Study: Humanize the given sentence. Undoubtedly, the paper gives the juridical knowledge base due to the fact it aims at promoting the gender equality, provides support for widows, increases in scholars' discourses and, of course, raises the awareness on this matter. The research examines court interpretations and legislation, customs and traditions, and women's property and income rights, respectively, in the relations with widows' inheritance. The report reveals the importance of an in-depth perusal and the making changes to the regulatory framework to provide all widows with equal protection. Hindu women have better chance to continue their lives with kids. after their husbands' death comparing to widows of people who are Muslim, Christian and Parsi thanks to Hindus becoming much more sympathetic at present days (after the 2005 revision). The analysis comes with recommendations of reformations which include abolition of discriminatory inheritance restrictions and adoption of gender equality standards as the key baselines of the inheritance regime. Promotion of awareness to the community about their inheritance rights and Experts will be of assistance in providing widows with or enhancing their knowledge of inheritance laws. Besides the relation of legal rights and social norms, future research should be on comparative studies, impact assessments, socio-legal studies, and policy assessment in order to reach a more robust result.

Gendering Public and Private International Law: Transversal Legal Histories of the State, Market, and the Family through Women's Private Property Rights

This essay takes up Karen Knop's challenge to reconstruct the oft-made distinction between private and public law by engaging private international law (PrIL) as a “lost side of international law.”1 To do so we interrogate the changing fortunes (literally) of women's private property rights in the long nineteenth century—a period characterized by the divestment and reinstatement of gendered rights in national law—focusing on the Nordics, Europe more broadly, and the Colonial world. Following Knop and other feminist legal scholars, and by engaging with questions of what Mariana Valverde calls “scale,”2 we bring women's property rights in conversation with international law. In doing so, we point to sites of engagement where the politico-economic structures of international law are lived, negotiated, reconfigured, and made real.3 We use scale to frame and inform our analysis bringing attention to how the “small” (micro) economics and politics of everyday life, women's labor, and gendered legal concerns, underpin and are an intrinsic part of the “large-scale” structures of international law. “All scales shifts,” Mariana Valverde notes, meaning that such “processes . . . br[ing] certain phenomena into focus that had previously been blurred or pushed to the background.”4 Recovering matters of women's history and everyday life, which, as Knop has argued are often “hiding in plain sight,” with a focus on women's property rights, brings to the fore the critical relationship between family/household, market, and the state, and the fundamental role international law has played in implementing a specific economic vision through the organization of gendered power relations.

Glimpse of New Woman & Evolution of Feminine Power in Manju Kapur's "Difficult Daughters"

The purpose of this paper is to study the evolution of feminist power and the emergence of new woman in the novel "Difficult Daughter's". Manju Kapur is an eminent novelist who can be put in the category of those women writers who brought a remarkable transformation in the representation of women characters. As a woman she is concerned with the problems of Indian woman in the patriarchal family and deals with various feminist Issues as gender equality, freedom from discrimination,right to education, marriage, abortion, autonomy, women's property rights, oppression etc. In the novel *Difficult Daughter's* Virmati is a typical daughter to her mother as she opposes the patriarchal norms for self identity. Women are discriminated and devoid of their basic rights in the patriarchal society Her female protagonists are educated women with independent thinking who follow their own ideology. Her novels present the position of women and their struggle in the contemporary Indian society .As a woman, she successfully highlights the feminist struggle against patriarchy, exploitation. Her female characters reveal feminist power and represent the new women who are thinking, questioning and rational beings and raise a voice for basic rights, self identity and Survival.

Property Rights of Women: A Case Study of Political Empowerment of Women with Reference To Khasi and Assamese Society

Property right is the permanent guarantor of economic sustenance. Economic assurance and political participation coincide with the empowerment of women. Being a Matrilineal society, the Khasi tribe of Meghalaya licenses the inheritance right to women, while the patriarchal system in Assamese Society forbids women to acquire property rights. Since the previous studies do not exhibit the inherent association among economic right, property right and political right, therefore the cornerstone of the present study is to show the conjoining character among these rights and further progresses with reflecting this interrelation in the political participation of women in both divergent Khasi and Assamese societies. For this purpose both ‘qualitative and quantitative methods’ have been used with ‘comparative analysis’ between Khasi and Assamese Society. The elaboration of the study can be concluded with the findings that owning property right provides economic autonomy which in turn helps to increase the bargaining power. Moreover, the study also discovers that although the women in Khasi society enjoy high social status because of having privilege in the inheritance right, yet the customary bigotry and prejudices limit their political participation.

Coercion or Consent? Women, Property and Legal Authority in Early Modern Scotland

During the early modern period women's ownership of property was significantly constrained by the marital relationship. Scots law stipulated that much of a woman's property passed to her husband on marriage and that her ability to sell, control or dispose of much property without her husband's consent was severely restricted. Yet, despite such strict legal rules, jurists were aware that a married woman could be placed in a difficult position if her husband abused his position, with legal procedures introduced to mitigate a husband's extensive property powers. As a result, a husband could not sell land his wife brought to the marriage, or any land they held jointly, without her consent, indicated by her signature or mark on the deed and her declaration in a private examination that she acted under her own free will and not under coercion or pressure from her husband. This article interrogates the legal requirement of the wife's consent in Scots law from two conflicting positions: first, as a restraint on the husband's administrative powers in that she was entitled to openly challenge a mortgage or sale; and second, as an endorsement of the husband's superior position in that she was most likely unable to publicly challenge her husband's patriarchal authority during his lifetime. In doing so, it argues that women's legal authority in early modern Scotland was complex and, at times, contradictory, and that this legal ambiguity entitled the courts to make decisions that routinely looked beyond fixed rules when women's property rights and patriarchal rules overlapped.

Women's Motivation for Joining the Maoist Movement in Nepal: A Study of Ex-PLA Participants in Janaki Rural Municipality, Kailali

This research aims to investigate the motivations of women for joining the Maoist movement and strives to challenge outdated beliefs about women's issues. It delves into their socio-cultural, economic, and educational backgrounds, as well as their pursuit of gender equality, leadership, and self-worth while working alongside men on equal terms. The study focuses on 15 Ex-PLA women in Janaki Rural Municipality, employing a purposive sampling method and an anthropological approach involving interviews and observations. The research unravels the challenges in analyzing female participants' experiences and opinions, considering the sensitivity and confidentiality of the subject matter and the cautious approach to human rights and privacy. The discussion reveals the deeply entrenched patriarchal system in Nepal, which has historically relegated women to a subordinate position and deprived them of power and knowledge creation. Despite legislative measures granting women citizenship and some representation, informal barriers and societal attitudes continue to impede their progress. The study highlights various factors motivating women to join the Maoist movement in Janaki Rural Municipality, including the historical patriarchal nature of Nepal, limited property rights for women, extended male absences, the dual burden of coordinating with both Maoist and security forces, and the impact of the Kilosera-2 operation's brutality and upheaval. Ultimately, this research sheds light on the transformative potential of women when given opportunities and challenges the prevailing societal norms, offering insights into the factors driving their participation in the Maoist movement and advocating for their rights and recognition on equal footing with men.

Socio-Economic Structure of Widowhood in India: Past and Present

This paper is a historiographical review of selected significant scholarship on widowhood in India. Most important conclusion is that the difference in widowhood experiences in India is premised upon the fact that the high-caste customs and cultural codes has created a disadvantageous gender equation for women. Nineteenth century legal-reformist debates around sati, widow remarriage and the age of consent were templates on which deep anxieties over the Hindu female body were expressed. Widow remarriage was a way of bringing this body back into the arena of reproduction and motherhood. While the actual practice of sati (widow self - immolation) was declared unlawful, the cultural codes upholding a widow’s imagined renunciatory powers were also being rewritten throughout the anti-colonial movement. A strong notion of a possible ‘living’ sati was created. The attributes of self-discipline and perfect control over one’s sexual desires and impulses became the highest preferable form of Hindu womanhood (irrespective of the caste and class of women). Besides nation building, the patriarchal perceptions of the ‘self-controlled’ body of a Hindu widow also facilitated the ease with which modernity could be fused with ideas of honour and self-abnegation amongst Hindu women. These ideas coexisted with the Indian reformist demand for enhanced property rights for women (widows in particular) and women’s growing role in the anti-colonial movement as well as in the post-1947 Indian society and economy.

INHERITANCE RIGHTS OF WOMEN – THE NORTH INDIAN SCENARIO

Indian women have had to fight for their property rights for a long time, just like women in other countries. Indian women's property rights are not fair or equal, but they have come a long way in the last 100 years. Indian women still have less property rights than men, both in terms of the amount and the quality of those rights.
 When it involves property rights, Indian women have a lot of different ideas. India is home to a lot of various religions, and each one has its own rules about how to live. The right to own something is one of these aspects. Even among the different religions, there are subsets and local rules and customs that have their own property rights. A code of property rights was written down for Hindus, Sikhs, Monks, and Jains in 1956. Christians live by a different set of rules, and neither Shias nor Sunnis have put their property rights in writing. Also, tribal women from different faiths and states still adhere to the laws and traditions of their tribal groups when it did come to their property rights. The Indian Constitution states that both the central government as well as the state governments have the authority to pass legislation about succession, which makes things even more complicated. This means so each state can make its own rules about property, and some have done so.

DIMENSIONS OF GENDER (IN) EQUALITY IN INDIA- A COMPARATIVE STUDY AMONG STATES OF INDIA

Abstract
 This study takesup” Dimensions of Gender Equality in India.”While examining the dimensions the researchers compares the gender development index reports of states in India Gender equality-a driver for economic growth, matters in its own right,and as as pre requisite for the health and development of families and economies. The term gender equality has been on the corpet for the past two decades. The millennium development goals set gender equality and women empowerment at 3 rd place. Earlier women empowerment had been assessed interns of access to resources and later on moved to control over resources. The resources include physical resources. Fiscal resopurces, financial resources and intellectual resources. The term empowerment has been pronounced with the term empowerment after the millennium year. The post 2015 framework present a unique opportunity to build on the achievement of the millennium development goal, while also addressing that lag behind. The sustainable development goal also set Gender equality at fifth place. The reason is that Gender inequality persists everywhere and stagnates the progress of a country. The un equal treatment or perceptions of the individuals on the basis of gender have been witnessed not only in developing countries like India, but also in developed countries aswell. Gender related inequality in human well being is one of the most crucial issues in many states in India.The female dis advantage in survival is the important dimension that has drawn the attention of policy makers. InIndia the situation is not even among the states; Kearela has lesser discrimination while Odissa has higher discrimination. The sex ratio is also high in kerela which shows positive symptoms of women empowerment. Maharastra introduced property rights for women. Its percapita income is high compared to kerela but GDI is low. Female Education growth in kerela promotes gender equality.Has education alone dis appear inequalities is the million dollar question? Per capita income is not so high in kerela as compared to other southern states.
 
 The study examines gender equality on the basis of Gender Development Index, which measures gender gap in human development by accounting disparities between men and women in three dimensions of human develoipme3nt, a long and healthy life, knowledge and a decent standard of living. The global gender gap report places India at 135 out of 146 countries. India has moved from 140 to 135 from last year. Though India is moving towards one of the developed nations in the world, Gender inequality pulling its growth. Which factor is hindering the SGDs 5 the goal gender equality in India? The issue of gender inequality had been in the lime light in all academic conferences, seminars and symposiums. Why gender inequality prevails in higher degree in some states of India? What are the policy measures have to be pinned up? What are the measures to be added in those states? Any other indicators to be included along with HDI indicators? These are the research questions to be addressed. This paper is an attempt made by the researchers to address these issues

Increasing Number of Cases of Divorce in India after Lockdown

When a marital status is dissolved between a man and woman it is known as Divorce. After petition is filed by the women or man, the separation is granted by the court of law. It had been observed that about 7 out of the 10 calls received by an advocate in a day are about divorce. To be specific, it is noted that there is 20% growth in divorce cases after the court resumes after lockdown. Bill passed in the parliament in the mid-1950s provided for women property rights, outlawed polygamy and allowed partners to file for divorce. The laws were further twisted in 1976 to allow divorce by mutual consent. Divorce is one of the most horrible and painful encounters in an individual's life. Divorce is the end of a marriage, dropping the legal obligations and duties of marriage and dissolving the obligations of marital status among a couple. Divorce is perhaps the hardest situation a family can go through. Not so far in the past the word 'Divorce' was unimaginable. Individuals even delayed their enduring marriages to maintain a strategic distance from divorce but this situation isn’t the same any longer. Everywhere throughout the world, the rate of divorce among couples is growing at a disturbing rate.

Increasing Number of Cases of Divorce in India after Lockdown

When a marital status is dissolved between a man and woman it is known as Divorce. After petition is filed by the women or man, the separation is granted by the court of law. It had been observed that about 7 out of the 10 calls received by an advocate in a day are about divorce. To be specific, it is noted that there is 20% growth in divorce cases after the court resumes after lockdown. Bill passed in the parliament in the mid-1950s provided for women property rights, outlawed polygamy and allowed partners to file for divorce. The laws were further twisted in 1976 to allow divorce by mutual consent. Divorce is one of the most horrible and painful encounters in an individual's life. Divorce is the end of a marriage, dropping the legal obligations and duties of marriage and dissolving the obligations of marital status among a couple. Divorce is perhaps the hardest situation a family can go through. Not so far in the past the word 'Divorce' was unimaginable. Individuals even delayed their enduring marriages to maintain a strategic distance from divorce but this situation isn’t the same any longer. Everywhere throughout the world, the rate of divorce among couples is growing at a disturbing rate.

How gender-based cultural practices violate women's property rights and inhibit property ownership: A South African perspective

This article discusses the effect of gender-based cultural practices on women's property rights in South Africa and how this impacts on women's ability to own property – particularly land. The cultural practices discussed include those relating to customary marriages such as payment of brideprice and polygamy. They also include the practices of levirate marriages and male premogeniture. These practices are linked to the unequal position of women in society, and they do not only prohibit women's access to property ownership but they also infringe their constitutional rights. To that end, the constitutional protection of the right to equality in relation to property rights is discussed and suggestions are made on how the Constitution can be used to protect women's property rights. The role of the courts in protecting women's property rights is particularly highlighted. Specific reference is made to the significance of section 39 of the Constitution which requires a court to interpret the Bill of Rights in a way that promotes “the values that underlie an open and democratic society based on human dignity, equality and freedom” and obliges the courts to consider international law when interpreting the Bill of Rights. Indeed the article concludes that denying women's rights to property under the guise of culture is discriminatory and offends against fundamental and intrinsic human rights. It is proposed that courts should be encouraged to draw inference from international law as mandated by section 39 of the Constitution as this will, in all likelihood, see more women enjoying independent rights in property.

Matrimonial property rights of women in India

Matrimonial property rights of women in India

Women's Property Rights Under Traditional Hindu Law and the Hindu Succession Act, 1956: A Few Observations

Women's Property Rights Under Traditional Hindu Law and the Hindu Succession Act, 1956: A Few Observations

A Fool’s Errand? Legal Legacies of Reconstruction in Two Southern States

This Article examines several legal aspects of Reconstruction. It first looks at how the Texas and North Carolina supreme courts helped mediate the transition from a pre-war to a post-war society. Were the courts composed of unconditional Unionists, Conservatives, or a mix? Did they try to help the people of their states accept slav- ery's demise or did they aggravate the sting of defeat? A closely related issue is how Reconstruction lawmakers adjusted the legal rights of blacks following the abolition of slavery. Did they leave a permanent imprint on civil rights law or did they confirm Tourgee's judgment that Reconstruction was ultimately a "fool's errand"?' The Article next examines state constitutional history, which is also necessary for a full understanding of Reconstruction's legal legacy. North Carolina's Reconstruction constitution encompassed not only racial reforms but also a variety of attempts to catch up with social and economic reforms enacted in other parts of the nation before the war. Texas's Reconstruction constitution did the same, albeit to a lesser extent, because Texas had already adopted some of the social and economic reforms in question before the war. Texas enacted a new constitution at the end of Reconstruction and North Carolina added extensive amendments to its constitution at the end of Reconstruction, but both states stopped far short of eradicating all Reconstruction-era constitutional reforms. The Article next examines the evolution of economic law in Texas and North Carolina during the Reconstruction era. Reconstruction had profound economic as well as political consequences for the South. A new agricultural labor system had to be developed to replace slavery. Lawmakers had to arrange an orderly transition from the Confederate financial system back to the federal system and respond to problems arising out of the widespread poverty and debt created by the war. By 1865, the Industrial Revolution was well underway in the North, and the Southern states had to decide whether to shape their legal systems to follow suit or to preserve their rural, agricultural pre-war character. Lastly, the Article examines changes in married women's property rights law during Reconstruction. Many Southern women gained an "experience of self-sufficiency during the war [that] opened the door a crack to the 'strong-minded' women." This fact, together with a desire to alleviate post-war economic distress by protecting family assets from creditors, led several ex-Confederate states, including North Carolina, to expand married women's property rights during Reconstruction. Other Confederate states, including Texas, had been leaders in the married women's property rights movement before the war and therefore experienced less change in this area during Reconstruction.

Barriers to Help-Seeking for Domestic Violence in Kyrgyzstan: Perspectives of Criminal Justice, Social, Health, and Educational Professionals.

Research with survivors of domestic violence (DV) suggests that most do not seek supportive services from formal organizations. The purpose of this study is to understand the structural and legal barriers that prevent survivors of DV from seeking help in Kyrgyzstan from the perspectives of professionals within the areas of law enforcement, judicial system, social, health, and educational sectors working directly with survivors. We conducted 20 semi-structured interviews and 8 focus groups with 83 professionals who are employed as domestic violence or legal advocates, psychologists, healthcare providers, educators, and law enforcement officials who had worked with the survivors of DV in their current positions. We analyzed the data using a multistep strategy derived from grounded theory methods. The findings of the study highlighted six structural barriers: (1) financial dependence on the abuser, (2) stigma and shame of seeking help, (3) few crisis centers and rigid acceptance criteria for temporary protection, (4) the normalization and societal acceptance of abuse, (5) a lack of property rights for women, and (6) distrust of formal services. The participants indicated five legal barriers, including the following: (1) insufficient sanctions for abusers, (2) unclear provisions and inadequate enforcement of law, (3) a low likelihood of prosecution, (4) poor procedures, stereotypes of survivors, and revictimization during investigations, and (5) protection for abusers who work in positions of power. The structural and legal barriers that survivors face when seeking help are formidable challenges that will require extensive support from professionals working in the fields of criminal justice, social work, and public health. Findings suggest that both short-term and longer-term interventions that require sustainability of prevention efforts are necessary to address barriers to help-seeking identified in the study.

A Comparative Juridical Analysis of the Constitutional Advancement of Women’s Matrimonial Property Rights in Swaziland and Kenya

The equalisation of women’s and men’s marital rights is still a challenge for certain countries on the African continent. Although most African countries have adopted supreme constitutions guaranteeing a host of justiciable human rights, the marginalisation and subjugation of women persists. In this article, we engage in a critical review and assessment of two divergent court decisions (one from Swaziland and the other from Kenya) which concern the matrimonial property rights of women. Those cases will be used as the foundation for investigating and evaluating the degree to which Swaziland and Kenya are either enhancing or constraining women’s matrimonial rights. In this article, we also assess the extent to which national constitutional law is being harmonised with existing and recently promulgated legislation and whether the purported synthesis of enacted marriage laws has affected constitutional equality in those specific countries. Additionally, we contend that the promulgation of new legislation and/or the amendment or repeal of unconstitutional legislation is insufficient to advance true equality. The courts or the judiciary, must also perform their remedial and pre-emptive role in the protection, enforcement and promotion of constitutional rights and the facilitation of equality reform. In our opinion, the matrimonial property rights of women in Africa can be equalised and enhanced even in systems of law that remain rooted in traditionalism and which habitually treat women as inferior to men. Such a mammoth undertaking requires a dual commitment and concerted action from both the legislature and the judiciary.

La perspectiva de género y la protección de los derechos patrimoniales de las mujeres frente al divorcio

 The persistence of subordinated and unequal gender relations affects women preventing them from fully enjoying their substantive right to equality. The gender- neutral language of laws can exacerbate challenges women face for their rights to be acknowledged. For that reason, gender mainstreaming constitutes an effective tool which enables adjudicators to better assess the facts and evidence of a gender-related case and thus construe laws in such a way as to adjust the structural imbalance between men and women. In recent years, courts have resorted more frequently to this tool to adjudicate cases. . However, it is still in an early face as regards the division of marital assets. For that purpose, this papers reviews, as an example, some Argentine judgments in which this approach helped restore the property rights of women.