First lady Auxilia Mnangagwa is educating widows on inheritance laws to empower them to continue living on their matrimonial property until they die in the wake of rampant violation by in-laws who take advantage of their ignorance, fear of social stigma and the inaccessibility of the courts.
In road shows with the Master of High Court Eldered Mutasa, the first lady is teaching widows about the constitutional guarantees of equal rights to own property, debunking customary law which often takes precedence, especially in rural areas, that widows have no right to inherit from their husbands.
At the latest meeting in Mashonaland West, Mutasa highlighted the need to be conversant with the law, saying there were predators targeting widows for the purpose of defrauding them.
The First Lady said she was concerned with widows who continue to lose property in inheritance disputes due to lack of knowledge. Many widows in Zimbabwe lose property to in-laws, even on the day their husband dies.
Fending off relatives while mourning their husbands and selling assets like cattle to pay court fees to fight eviction were among the challenges widows face.
