Taking good care of widows is considered a high form of charity in Islam. According to Islamic laws, no widow is excluded from inheritance. A Muslim widow with no child is entitled to one-fourth of the property of the deceased husband after clearing his debts. However, in most African countries, widows are historically among the poorest and most vulnerable individuals. Widows from African homes are usually suspected by family members of the deceased spouse of being responsible for his death.
Most widows are deprived of their inheritance rights, some are prohibited to remarry and others are forcefully remarried and sexually assaulted by their brothers-in-law who still champion the outdated wife inheritance tradition. Some of those who refuse to have illegal affairs are brutally mistreated and barred from owning their husbands’ property and others are even denied children custody.
Mwanaidi Mwarandani comes from Viungujini,Msambweni Kwale County. She has been living in stigma and marginalization for 12 years after her husband died. She was subjected to so much agony after her in-laws took everything she owned.
As a result, she went back to her parent’s house where she still lives to date. But life has been extremely difficult for her.
“My husband was sick and was hospitalized but he died. My in-laws did not want me to live in my house and I was evicted. My house was big with everything in it. They took everything. The TV, seats, everything! The little that I managed to take they also came for it, claiming it belonged to their brother yet I also struggled with my husband to get the properties.”
Since 2020, Mwanaidi has been attending trauma healing sessions, summons from the religious leaders, linkages to economic opportunities as well as awareness forums organized by Tuwajali Wajane initiative she is now a changed woman.
Founded by Mwanasha Gaserego a youth from Kwale county, Tuwajali Wajane initiative has tremendously transformed the lives of more than 800 widows in Kwale county who have now become self-dependent despite their past hardships.
Gaserego came up with the idea after seeing so many widows in Msambweni being mistreated for not knowing their rights. Some of these widows never went to school due to the vice of early marriages. Through Tuwajali Wajane Initiative, widows have been enlightened on human rights and empowered socio-economically to sustain themselves. The women are also enrolled in adult education programs where they are taught how to read and write.
The widows are also sensitized on rights protection, matters of land inheritance, gender-based violence (GBV), equity and appropriate channels to find justice.
Through Tuwajali Wajane, Mwanasha introduced the women to several income-generating activities and linked them with rights organizations to help support their livelihoods.
Faida Shee, a 47 year old widow with seven children runs a small business through the empowerment of Tuwajali Wajane initiative. According to her she has been selling viluluda and half cakes to feed her children, one who is living with a disability.
“Tuwajali Wajane has helped me take a big step in my life. I feel free now. I am aware of and have links with different organizations that I can run to when I am abused. I know a lot of information and my business is doing well. I have benefited a lot,” Faida shares.
Life turned difficult for her years back after her husband was brutally murdered. He was murdered by unknown people. It was difficult for her to follow up on the case as it was her first time attending court proceedings but Gaserego helped her with the process.
Gaserego says the women are also offered counseling services and trained on decision making as well as empowered to have access to equal employment and livelihood opportunities. According to her, after the training, she looks for potential investors and women empowerment groups to help the widows start livelihood projects. So they can gain access to soft loans to support their business activities.
During this year’s International Widows Day, Gaserego launched Kwale Women Human Rights Defenders Network to protect them as they continue defending the rights of widows. She also urged politicians and lawmakers not to neglect the plight of widows in the country.
“We are aware of some politicians who have mentioned widows in their manifestos. We want them to remember the widows and let it not be politics. We also enlighten the widows about some opportunities that are there in the government, for example the Uwezo fund which they can borrow loans and benefit from.”
By: Halima Gongo
