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Saturday, August 16, 2008

Egyptian Women & Inheritance

Gulf News has this story:

Women in Egypt are being disadvantaged when it comes to inheritance. According to the article, there are ".... many Egyptian women whose access to inheritance is blocked by centuries-old traditions denying them their share of inheritance on the grounds this will fragment the family's property and hand it over to strange spouses. The trend is believed to be rife in Egypt's rural areas where tribal traditions and male chauvinism are still deeply rooted."

It is women who are usually the victims in this instance, fearing that acting against their male relatives would bring shame upon their family.

Furkhanda Hassan, the chairwoman of the governmental National Council for Women "... has recently proposed a draft bill to the Egyptian Parliament to criminalise the disinheritance of lawful heirs." No date has yet been forthcoming .. let us hope that it will not be too long.

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