“You Will Get Nothing”
Violations of Property and Inheritance Rights of Widows in Zimbabwe
Map .................................................................................................................................... I
Key Terms .......................................................................................................................... II
Summary ........................................................................................................................... 1
Key Recommendations ....................................................................................................... 7
Methodology...................................................................................................................... 8
I. Background ................................................................................................................... 10
The Rights of Older People ...................................................................................................... 10
The Invisibility of Widows in Global Policy and Development ................................................... 11
Harmful Practices and Widows in Zimbabwe ........................................................................... 13
Zimbabwe’s Dual Legal System ............................................................................................... 17
Developments in Neighboring Countries ................................................................................. 18
II. Findings: Property Grabbing from Widows .................................................................... 21
Illustrative Cases of Property Grabbing from Widows ............................................................... 21
Registration of Marriages ........................................................................................................24
Widowhood and Child Marriage ............................................................................................. 26
The Impact of Property Grabbing on Widows’ Lives ................................................................. 28
Remedies ...............................................................................................................................32
III. Legal Standards on the Rights of Widows .................................................................... 39
National Law ..........................................................................................................................39
African Human Rights Law Relevant to Widows........................................................................42
UN Standards on the Rights of Widows ...................................................................................44
Recommendations............................................................................................................ 49
To the Government of Zimbabwe and the Parliament of Zimbabwe: ........................................ 49
To the Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs .......................................................50
To the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, Gender and Community Development ............................... 51