Within the confines of the ideology of patriarchy and necessarily the stratified and
sectionalised society, however, men, whether citizens or not, have more chances to
land and soil rights than women.
16 In this chapter, African feminism helps to identify
the ideological tools of patriarchy, deconstruct and reconstructed them to enable
women and men access equal land and soil rights.
17 Unpacking the socio-legal
stratified society is intended to make it clear that land and soil rights and land
tenurial systems in Africa are inter-linked and reinforce each other within the
stratified and gendered society. Based on this analogy, the next subsection identifies,
through an African feminism theoretical framework, how land tenure systems that
regulate access to land and soil rights can be repackaged to benefit women and men
and citizens and non-citizens without discrimination.
3 The Link Between African Feminism, Land Tenure
Systems and Soil Rights in Africa
The foregoing discussion highlighted that the theoretical, factual and legal rights to
land and soil rights are problematic and are constructs of the ideology of patriarchy.
Those rights are enjoyed differently by women and men and citizens and
non-citizens. This section uses the African feminism theoretical perspective to
interrogate the ideological contestations in the land and soil rights regime in Africa,
using the case of Uganda. African feminism in this particular case uses analogy of
motherism (mother’s love to her children) to drive the nail in the socio-legal fabric
constructed by the ideology of patriarchy.
18 In so doing, the analysis unpacks and
attempts to repackage the operational mechanisms in the existing land tenure
systems in a better design capable of engendering sustainable utilization of the
African land and soil. The analysis maintains a focus on the need to equitably
redistribute land to women and men, citizens and non-citizens, without discrimination, in order to enable equitable access to land and soil rights.
According to the African feminism, land tenure systems in Africa lean towards
bestowing more access to land and soil rights to men than to the women.
19 It suffices
to note that African feminism, often dominated by debates on womanism (the
biological factor of being a female, and also the weak gender), is a brand of the
general feminism perspective and shares a lot with other brands of feminism.
20
A deeper understanding of the African feminism, and necessarily African womanism perspective, reveals that it shares a lot with the western written forms of
feminism. In this regard, Mwale asserts:
16 Asiimwe (2001).
17 Kandiyoti (1988).
18 Mwale (2002).
19 Asiimwe (2001).
20 Coetzee (2017).
African Feminism, Land Tenure and Soil Rights in Africa: A Case of Uganda
137
sectionalised society, however, men, whether citizens or not, have more chances to
land and soil rights than women.
16 In this chapter, African feminism helps to identify
the ideological tools of patriarchy, deconstruct and reconstructed them to enable
women and men access equal land and soil rights.
17 Unpacking the socio-legal
stratified society is intended to make it clear that land and soil rights and land
tenurial systems in Africa are inter-linked and reinforce each other within the
stratified and gendered society. Based on this analogy, the next subsection identifies,
through an African feminism theoretical framework, how land tenure systems that
regulate access to land and soil rights can be repackaged to benefit women and men
and citizens and non-citizens without discrimination.
3 The Link Between African Feminism, Land Tenure
Systems and Soil Rights in Africa
The foregoing discussion highlighted that the theoretical, factual and legal rights to
land and soil rights are problematic and are constructs of the ideology of patriarchy.
Those rights are enjoyed differently by women and men and citizens and
non-citizens. This section uses the African feminism theoretical perspective to
interrogate the ideological contestations in the land and soil rights regime in Africa,
using the case of Uganda. African feminism in this particular case uses analogy of
motherism (mother’s love to her children) to drive the nail in the socio-legal fabric
constructed by the ideology of patriarchy.
18 In so doing, the analysis unpacks and
attempts to repackage the operational mechanisms in the existing land tenure
systems in a better design capable of engendering sustainable utilization of the
African land and soil. The analysis maintains a focus on the need to equitably
redistribute land to women and men, citizens and non-citizens, without discrimination, in order to enable equitable access to land and soil rights.
According to the African feminism, land tenure systems in Africa lean towards
bestowing more access to land and soil rights to men than to the women.
19 It suffices
to note that African feminism, often dominated by debates on womanism (the
biological factor of being a female, and also the weak gender), is a brand of the
general feminism perspective and shares a lot with other brands of feminism.
20
A deeper understanding of the African feminism, and necessarily African womanism perspective, reveals that it shares a lot with the western written forms of
feminism. In this regard, Mwale asserts:
16 Asiimwe (2001).
17 Kandiyoti (1988).
18 Mwale (2002).
19 Asiimwe (2001).
20 Coetzee (2017).
African Feminism, Land Tenure and Soil Rights in Africa: A Case of Uganda
137