Africa-Press – Zambia. There was a time when a woman could not get a Zambian passport for her child, without the consent of the father. She essentially could not pass on her citizenship to the children she bore.
Simply motherhood was not equal to fatherhood.
Well, that travesty was brought to an end by Edith Nawakwi, when the passport office wanted the consent of the father to her children, before they could be included on her passport.
Edith went to court and won one of the most conseqential judgements for everyday life, in Zambia.
The courts essentially agreed that a child can inherit citizenship though either of their parents.
In my view, Edith Nawakwi’s litigation was the single most conseqential advancement for women in Zambia, in recent history. I can’t think of another, actually.
Well, maybe the Interstate Succession Act, that allowed widows – whether married customarily or under the Act – to benefit from their husbands estate. That law much reduced the rampant looting of property, that used to occur when a man died without leaving a will, as is fashionable in Zambia.
But back to Edith.
Impressive, was not only the win in court, but the fact that she encountered a nonsensical hurdle in her motherhood, that many before her had quietly accepted, and fought it for all others.
That a young woman, raised deep in one of the most patriarchal cultures of our country, Namwanga culture, grew up to achieve such concrete change, is a whole motivational story.
Edith also distinguished herself in being the first female Minister of Finance. She was a solid one too.
Her political life was, overall, rather chequered, with real ups and downs, but the history of Zambia cannot be written without a solid mention of her.
As for single mothers in Zambia – no one person do they owe more than Ms Edith Nawakwi!
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