Property Rights Must Be Recognized for Kenyan Women

The Human Rights Watch states that the lack of basic property rights for women in Kenya has led to poverty and the weakening of many of them. A report published by the organization on Tuesday, titled "Double Standards: Violations of Women's Property Rights in Kenya," documents hundreds of cases of women who have been thrown out of their homes and lives after divorce or the death of their husbands due to refusal to adhere to a tradition known as "sexual cleansing." The report tells the story of a 36-year-old widow named "Rose Otai," who is infected with the AIDS virus and whose husband died of AIDS. After her husband's death, his relatives told her that if she wanted to keep her house, she had to have sexual relations with a fisherman and then marry one of her husband's brothers. When this woman refused to accept this, she and her five children were thrown out of their home. She is now reliant on charity to survive. Janet Walsh, the report's producer, says that some laws in Kenya were enacted to protect women, but these laws are not enforced. Ms. Walsh states that the government must punish those who violate these laws. The new Kenyan government has promised to implement a new constitution this year that establishes equal property rights between men and women.