By Dedi Esbon Samuel

Christine Dudu, a 59-year South Sudanese woman, is currently in distress due to complications involving a piece of land. The land, inherited from her late father, was allegedly unlawfully sold due to her gender, leading to a dispute with local authorities.

“We have a piece of land that we’ve lived in for more than 40 years. It was my father’s land. But when my father and elder brother died, I became the only person responsible in the family to inherit. This piece of land has a lot of issues” Dudu said.

Dudu, a resident of Gumbo Shirikat in Juba, reported that she inherited a parcel of land situated on the outskirts of the city along the Juba-Bor highway following the passing of her father and elder brother.

According to her, she was surprised by the arrival of two land-cruiser pick-ups filled with soldiers, purportedly sent by an individual who claimed to have purchased the land from members of the local land demarcation committee. Dudu also claimed that these committee members had previously challenged her right as a woman to own land.

“On the first day, they (the land Committee) sent two vehicles full of soldiers. They came when I was not around. But my sister told me that there are people in the house. So, when I came, I asked their leader what they had come to do. He told me they were sent by the owner of the land (the buyer)” Dudu said.

She added “By just looking at our land, though you’re not given the land documents, as a government official, you can tell that this land belongs to these people. But not someone who just came with documents from yesterday and claims that the place is his.”

According to Dudu, the Land Committee sold her family’s land after discovering she was the sole heir, despite her family having lived there for over four decades.

“When they were first upgrading the area, they took my token and sold it to other people because they know I am a woman. However, with teachings and encouragement from the Women Foundation for Humanity Organization I knew that we shouldn’t leave what belongs to women to go” she said

Legal Provisions On Women’s Rights to Land and propert

Despite the legal grounds provided by the Transitional Constitution of the Republic of South Sudan 2011, women still face significant challenges in owning land and other properties.

The Transitional Constitution of South Sudan, in Article 16, and the Land Act, in Article 20 (5), both recognize women’s rights, affirming their equality with men, especially concerning land ownership and inheritance.

However, despite these legal protections, many women, particularly in rural and traditionally governed areas, still experience discrimination often due to male-dominated customs and biases present among male officials within the government.

Dudu’s case has sparked concern, particularly among women activists, and highlights questions about the disparity between South Sudan’s formal laws and the deeply entrenched customs that still dictate daily life.

Dorothy Drabuga, Chairperson of the Greater Equatoria Land Alliance and Executive Director of the Women Foundation for Humanity Organization, noted that the lack of implementation of existing laws and insufficient awareness regarding land policy continue to be major challenges. She believes that this is a primary reason why women’s rights are being violated in the country.

“I think one way to address this issue is implementation of the laws. So, like we have the South Sudan land Act 2009, and also the local government Act 2009. And women’s rights have been fully protected in these two acts” Drabuga said “But despite the fact that these laws are there, lack of implementation affects some of the women and vulnerable people.”

The constitution further stipulates that all women have the right to own property and to share in the estates of their deceased husbands, along with any surviving legal heirs.

Dudu said many women in South Sudan continue to face harassment from corrupt government officials and security personnel who exploit their money and power to take what does not belong to them. While she continues to pursue her land case, Dudu is optimistic about winning. She appealed to the government and traditional leaders to support and encourage women in advocating for their rights.

Drabuga stressed that many women, like Christine Dudu, are facing a lot of challenges ranging from the community level up to the national level, where local government officials in the county and Payams sometimes deprived women of their rights.

In addition Drabuga, noted that the enforcement of women’s rights, particularly regarding land, faces challenges due to customary laws in some communities that restrict women’s land ownership.

In November of last year, the Minister of Land, Housing, and Urban Development, Michal Chiengiek, presented the draft National Land Policy 2023 before the Transitional National Legislative Assembly (TNLA). 

According to Drabuga, this land policy represents the most effective legal framework for addressing women’s land rights, as it comprehensively covers these rights.

“And also, remember, we don’t have, the land policy. If the land policy were there, because most of the issues now surrounding, women’s land rights have been addressed in the national land policy. So, if the land policy could be passed, I think some of these issues could be avoided.” 

Regina Lazarus, who serves as a community women coordinator for the Gumbo Shirikat Residential area and at the African Inland Church (AIC), confirmed that women encounter numerous difficulties with land ownership, particularly widows.

“These cases are indeed there. I have colleagues who lost their husbands, and it becomes hard to get processions such as land and other properties,” Regina said. “Women don’t easily get their rights as stipulated in the laws, as well as any human being that is created in this world.”

The women leader emphasised that all human beings have equal rights regardless of their gender, thus, deserve equal treatment. 

“This is not good; everyone has a right to be a woman or a man. I witnessed these issues. And to me, it has caused a lot of pain and agony among women. Sometimes if you don’t have God in you, you’ll end up dying of stress,” she stressed.

She further appealed for women’s rights to be respected. 

The Protocol to The African Charter On Human and Peoples’ Rights On the Rights of Women in Africa. 

In addition to local laws, international treaties such as the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, also known as the Maputo Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa, affirm that women and men are entitled to property rights, including the right to equitable sharing of joint property in cases of separation, divorce, or annulment.

Article 7 (d) of the Maputo protocol gives women the right to inherit property equally, both from their parents and spouses. The Protocol further emphasizes the importance of ensuring women’s access to resources and economic independence, even within the context of marriage, also guaranteeing women’s equal rights to land and property. 

These violations not only angered women across the Country, but also civil society activists with some calling for multi-faceted approach, including strengthening legal frameworks, promoting gender equality in land administration, raising awareness of women’s rights, and ensuring access to justice.

Ter Manyang, Executive Director of the Center for Peace and Advocacy (CPA), said women face significant violations of their land rights due to a combination of customary practices, weak institutional framework, and limited legal awareness. 

“These violations often lead to women being dispossessed of land and property, particularly after the death of their husbands,” Manyang said. “Additionally, inadequate access to justice and limited coordination among relevant actors hinder the enforcement of women’s land rights.” 

The civil society activist emphasised the crucial need to raise legal awareness and ensure the enforcement of existing laws that grant women the right to own property and land.

“Many women are unaware of their rights under statutory law, and even when aware, they may face difficulties in asserting those rights due to a lack of awareness or resources,” Manyang stressed. 

He added that “Institutional barriers and gender-biased practices within the justice system also impede women’s access to redress for land-related violations.”

Furthermore, the Center for Peace and Advocacy called for coordinated efforts between the government, Land institutions, and other partner organizations operating in South Sudan. 

“Addressing women’s land rights requires a multi-faceted approach, including strengthening legal frameworks, promoting gender equality in land administration, raising awareness of women’s rights, and ensuring access to justice” he said, adding that there’s a need for increased coordination among land actors, including government agencies, NGOs, and community organizations, is also crucial.

For his part, George Ritti, Director of Land in the National Ministry of Land, Housing and Urban Development, stated that the isolation of women’s rights to own land originates from customary law.

Ritti noted that women are granted full land ownership rights in all government laws, from the Transitional Constitution 2011 and the Land Act 2009 to the Local Government Act. However, some communities still hold the belief that women do not have these rights.

“In South Sudan, issue of land administration, we’re depending on two laws. The statutory and Customary laws. In the statutory laws we don’t have problem. Because it started from constitution, Land Act 2009 and Local Government Act 2009. All those laws we don’t have problem with women” Ritti said. 

The director emphasized that the core issue lies within the customary laws, which discriminate against women by denying them the right to own land at all levels, from the family to the broader community.

“our problem is the customary laws. You know, those customary laws, differs from community to community, some community, they can consider women, and some communities, don’t consider” he said. “Even within the family members, sometimes it depends on the relationship of the woman with the parents, but especially the women, they have right to own and the land and the property” he reiterated.

The official stated that the adoption of the National Land Policy 2023 by Parliament, where it is currently under scrutiny, is the only way to resolve these issues.

“What we are waiting for now is the land policy. When the land policy is adopted in the assembly, and signed by the president, I think everything will be very clear. Because in the land policy, the rights are there.” He elaborated. 

The ministry further reaffirmed its commitment to harmonizing the statutory and Customary laws.

Our efforts to reach the Standing Specialized Committee for Land in the Transitional National Legislative Assembly were not successful by the time of publication.

This story is reported with a grant from Journalists for Human Rights under the ‘Tackling Mis/Disinformation Project,’ funded by the Peace and Stabilization Program of the Government of Canada.