Victory has black women in Johannesburg who no longer have to endure their rights being trampled upon. Dated back to 1988, black women’s rights over their matrimonial properties were silenced.
Husbands sold off properties without consulting their wives and didn’t have to face the law for doing that. Until recently, the law was overturned by a landmark win. Struck with abject poverty and destitution after her marriage was over, a 72-year-old black woman in South Africa identified as Agnes Sithole challenged a sexist law in a patriarchal society.
This courageous act by Agnes not only led her to break free from the shackles of poverty as she won a share of her property back. She also freed thousands of black women, as much as 400,000 from this sexist law that is cancerous to women in South Africa.
Now in the law of South Africa, either the man or woman can no longer singlehandedly trade-off matrimonial properties. This must involve the consent of both the husband and the wife. Sections of the Matrimonial Property Act of 1984 and amendments made in 1988 have now been ruled against in South Africa.
Annika Claassens who is currently a Chief Researcher at LARC reacted to this new change ‘”This is a major judgment for South African women’’.
