KHYBER: Sumiya Afridi, a BS student of the University of Peshawar and a resident of Khyber district, believes that women in tribal districts are now becoming more conscious about their legitimate share in inheritance as they have started raising voice to secure these rights, which are considered a ‘taboo’ in the tribal society so far.

Also an elected councillor from Landi Kotal and an ardent feminist, Ms Afridi insists that the extension of judiciary and introduction of Land Registration Management Authority will also help in ensuring due share of local women in inheritance which is guaranteed by both Islam and Constitution.

She said that she had met with a number of women in her locality and they were not fully aware about their due share in inheritance.

“The women I spoke to were either uneducated or were kept ignorant by male members of their families for greed of grabbing their legitimate share in inheritance,” said Ms Afridi sharing her experience of meeting with tribal women, who had little exposure to ‘outside’ world and were denied share in inheritance on one pretext or the other.

Councillor believes merger of Fata with KP emboldens women to raise voice for their rights

She told Dawn that an elderly woman tried her level best to end her daughter’s marriage and bring her back home as she was not willing to transfer the share of her married daughter in the property to her husband’s family.

She, however, said that circumstances changed after the erstwhile Fata was merged with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Tribal women have now started approaching courts to redress their grievances with winning their right in inheritance as their top priority.

She believed that tribal society could not develop and move forward till the role of women was not acknowledged. “It is time that we not only accord our women due share in inheritance but also compensate them for the untiring services they provide to their male family members in accordance with the law and teachings of Islam,” said Ms Afridi.

Lawyers and civil society activists in Landi Kotal, Jamrud and Bara told this scribe that at least 18 women approached courts for acquisition of their share in inheritance while more than 30 more cases regarding distribution of family assets were also pending before the local courts.

Another 20 women from Katiyakhel sub-tribe of Kukikhel recently approached the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ombudsperson, dealing with harassment cases of women, for provision of their share in the compensation amount which the provincial government had paid for acquisition of the joint land of the said tribe.

The Katiyakhel women in their application said that all members of their tribe were the owners of the land but the amount paid as compensation was entirely ‘grabbed’ by the male elders of their tribe, depriving them of their legitimate share.

Naveed Ahmad Shinwari, the chief of Community Appraisal and Motivation Programme (Camp), sounded optimistic about tribal women winning their due share in inheritance as their sons and husbands had also started ‘pursuing’ their cases both in courts and with the local dispute resolution councils (DRCs).

“It is now a joint struggle, which is very encouraging but the most encouraging aspect is that female voices in support of their constitutional rights are now coming from a region where it was very hard to even think about it,” he said. He added that challenging the male-dominated tribal society was a far cry till recent past.

He said that Camp created a network of non-governmental organisations and imparted training to at least 29 of them while focusing on having consultations with hundreds of male and female members of tribal society to ascertain their point of view about women’s share in inheritance.

“Our efforts have caused a ripple effect in the tribal society as women are now becoming more aware about their share in inheritance while the male members are finding it hard to put up any resistance as these rights are also guaranteed by our religion Islam, which they cannot dare challenge,” he stated.

Advocates of the former Fata and so-called ‘champions’ of the primitive tribal customs and tradition are still at the forefront to oppose ‘tooth and nail’ women demanding share in inheritance.

Malak Abdur Razzaq, a Zakhakhel elder, said that women in tribal areas were still enjoying unparalleled respect with male members of the family fulfilling all their legitimate desires.

He was, however, at loss to explain the rationale behind denying share in inheritance to women while male members were unlawfully grabbing all the family assets and other valuable belongings.

However, it was still believed that alongside obsolete tribal customs and traditions, the costly and time-consuming legal battles were still discouraging a large number of tribal women, who were aspiring to secure legal share in inheritance.

Haroon Shinwari, a young lawyer from Landi Kotal, told Dawn that little or no education, family pressure and lack of awareness were the key reasons that deprived tribal women of their legitimate share in inheritance.

Published in Dawn, June 19th, 2023