Kenya court rejects plea for equal property rights in divorce

A Kenyan court on Monday rejected a plea for a change to the laws on how property should be split in divorce cases, a ruling activists said was a blow for women’s rights in the country.

Kenya’s High Court dismissed a 2016 petition from the Federation of Women Lawyers in Kenya (FIDA), an advocacy group that had argued the Marriage Properties Act was unconstitutional because it entitled each partner only to what they contributed.

The constitution states that married couples are entitled to equal rights and the group argued that the law unfairly impacted women, who were more likely to suffer financially from a marriage break-up.

In its ruling the court said that changing the law would “open the door for a party to get into marriage and walk out of it in the event of divorce with more than they deserve”.

In response, FIDA head Josephine Mong’are said it was a “sad day for Kenyans”.

“Every year millions of women in Kenya still find themselves fighting to hold onto their property after a divorce or the death of their husband,” she said in a statement.

Less than seven percent of title deeds are held by women alone or jointly with men in Kenya, according to a 2014 survey by the United Nations Conference on Trade.

Land is usually passed on to sons, making it hard for women to secure rights except through their husbands. Women and their children are often evicted if the husband dies or they divorce.

Less than two percent of title deeds issued in Kenya since 2013 went to women, according to the Kenya Land Alliance, an advocacy network.