Challenging Entrenched Marital Power in South Africa
This brief examines more than thirty years of legal reform aimed at removing husbands’ marital power at the expense of their wives from South African legislation. For decades, marital power relegated wives to a position akin to minors, with devasta...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Brief |
| Language: | English English |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2022
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/099437305132237734/IDU0aea226b80db9a048ca0be0f0e7a95e17b7ef http://hdl.handle.net/10986/37817 |
| Summary: | This brief examines more than thirty
years of legal reform aimed at removing husbands’ marital
power at the expense of their wives from South African
legislation. For decades, marital power relegated wives to a
position akin to minors, with devastating effects on women’s
economic empowerment. Removing the many components of this
form of discrimination from national law has required not
only a conducive political environment, but also sustained
momentum from the women’s rights movement and selective,
strategic litigation that challenges the varied effects.
Such reforms have directly and positively affected women’s
economic inclusion. While efforts to improve gender equality
in South Africa are ongoing, the analysis offers important
insights on optimal contexts for change, the role women play
in advocacy efforts, and the benefits of reform for economic growth. |
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