KABUL (SW) – During interviews with 17 women deprived of inheritance in the country, Salam Watandar found that these women have been deprived of their inheritance due to existing traditions and customs in the society.
These women said in interviews with Salam Watandar that due to the ruling traditions in families and society, inheritance is given only to men and according to them, women are deprived of it.
Out of the 17 women interviewed by Salam Watandar, 11 of them requested their inheritance through tribal means, but it was not granted, and the remaining four did not make any attempt to receive the inheritance and were deprived of it.
Only two of the interviewed women tried to get their inheritance through legal means after the inheritance was not given.
An interviewee, Madina, who asked for her inheritance, said in an interview with Salam Watandar that despite her request, she was not given the right to inherit.
Madina, who is a resident of Laghman, added that she was not given an inheritance due to the existing traditions in the society, and according to her, she is struggling with economic problems and is in dire need of the wealth left by her father.
She said that she has four brothers and two sisters from one father and that she inherited two mansions and several acres of land from her father.
Medina also said that although she asked for the inheritance, her rights were divided among her brothers and she was also threatened.
She said: “My brothers told me, if you want the right of inheritance, we don’t give you the right to even bury our bodies in our father’s cemetery. That’s why we gathered everyone and talked. They all said that our aunts and father’s cousins didn’t inherit, and my elder sister also said that I don’t inherit anything.”
Arzu and Rohina have also asked for their inheritance, but the wealth left by their father has been divided among themselves by their brothers.
Arzo said: “My father left me five acres of land, my sister and I didn’t take the inheritance. I tried to take my inheritance. We don’t give inheritance to women in our nation or in our people.
At the same time, Rohina says that she tried to get the inheritance, but her brothers told her that women do not have a share in the inheritance. “My brothers told me that you are married and have no rights. My other sisters did not take action and my brothers tell me that women do not have the right to inherit. No one gives inheritance to women in our nation.”
On the other hand, four of the 17 women interviewed by Salam Watandar said that they never tried to take their inheritance due to the existing traditions in the society.
According to her, given the traditions and customs in the society that only men are recognized as having the right to inherit, the poor were left behind because their attempt to take the inheritance is considered a challenge.
Safa said: “I have never tried to take inheritance from my family or legal authority. In our family, women are not given inheritance. Inheritance in our nation and society is bad. Women do not inherit easily. That’s why I didn’t ask for inheritance.”
Najibe said: “Because it is difficult and a challenge to give inheritance in our nation, and that’s why he didn’t take it.”
At the same time, during interviews with 17 women, it was found that these women have not been deprived of their inheritance from their father and mother, and only two women from this group want to go to judicial institutions to receive their inheritance. refer to
Satara, who wants to get her inheritance through legal means, said that she tried to get the inheritance from her father through tribal means, but her request was not accepted and now she wants to try through legal means.
She said: “I asked for inheritance and did not get it. If it goes ahead, I will go ahead with it through legal means. It has become a tradition, if someone wants the right of inheritance, the father’s family will cut ties with him.”
These women are known to be deprived of inheritance while the religious scholar insists on giving inheritance to women and says that based on the rules of Islam, if there is a boy or a girl left by the deceased, the woman will inherit half of the father’s wealth.
The religious scholar Atiqullah Anas said: “Just as men have rights, women also have rights, and it is said in the Holy Qur’an in Surah Nisah that their rights are fixed and there are fixed rules.”
At the same time, another religious scholar, Abdullah Ehsani, also said: “In terms of Islamic jurisprudence, the Qur’an and the Shari’a, women have also been given a share, and this is obligatory for both women and men, there is no exception. Two sisters have a share equal to one brother.”
On the other hand, a number of women’s rights activists say that women are still deprived of their inheritance due to the ignorance of the people about religion and the non-implementation of the law in the country.
Along with criticizing the government, they say that no concrete steps have been taken in the area of giving inheritance rights to women, and all measures are opened after consultation with the justice and judicial institutions.
Humira Farhangyar, an activist of women’s rights, said: “Unfortunately, religious scholars in our society did not understand that inheritance is a legitimate right of women in the way that they should have taught their families about inheritance. It was the same before.”
Soraya Pekan, another activist of women’s rights, said: “Most of the time in Afghanistan, women are not given inheritance and women do not know what their rights are and where to go for their rights. But in Afghanistan, you know that going to court for women is considered a shame and a defect.”
At the same time, a number of defense lawyers say that giving inheritance to women is specific according to Afghanistan’s laws and Sharia.
It has been said, but from the point of view of common people, giving inheritance to women is considered shameful and challenging.
Jameela Faqiryan, a defense lawyer, said: “We have come across many such cases that fortunately ended in favor of women. I brought forward a case to take the inheritance of my mother from my maternal uncle. There was a lot of property.”
We tried to get the caretaker government’s opinion on the said report, but we did not succeed. Although we have repeatedly contacted the Supreme Court regarding this matter for several weeks, but we have not succeeded in getting the opinion of the officials.
The fifth article of a six-point decree by the leadership of the caretaker government states that women should be given the right to inheritance and dowry.
ENDS
