Securing Land and Property Rights for HIV+ Women in Kenya

On 20 July 2016, KELIN’s Program Manager on Women Land and Property Rights, Onyango Ondeng presented a poster titled “Securing land rights for widows living with and affected by HIV using customary justice structures,” at the 21st International AIDS Conference in Durban. This poster highlighted the plight of the HIV positive Kenyan women and orphans who suffer sigma and discrimination due to their status, and the use of the customary justice system to ensure access to justice especially in securing land and property rights.

The presentation outlined the risks widows are exposed to when they are evicted from their land. These risks include multiple sex partners or involuntary sex work in order to earn enough money to survive, which predisposes them to HIV. For women and children living with HIV, it becomes very difficult to access consistent treatment.

Ondeng further discussed the Cultural Structures Program that entails training of elders and widows on the mediation process and the rights based approach using the customary justice. This program has ensured the resettlement of over 300 widows enabling them to become economically independent and productive members of the community in the high HIV prevalence counties of Homabay and Kisumu.

Ondeng assured the delegates that the Program will be of replicated since KELIN has developed a tool that provides simple guidelines that can be implemented by any community where cultural practices have a negative impact. He stressed that the widows and elders document all cases they settle since this helps in formalizing the process of mediation with the Judiciary as envisioned by Article 159(2) of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010.

To contribute to the discussion and for live updates follow KELIN on our social media platforms: Twitter: @KELINkenya using hashtag #AIDS2016 #Justice2Health

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kelinkenya

For more information contact:

Onyango O. Ondeng

Program Manager, Women Land and Property Rights

Milimani area |Opposite Jalaram Academy

Off Nairobi Rd @ Kisumu Pentecostal Church

P.O Box 7708| 40100 Kisumu – Kenya

Tel: +254-57-2532664: Cell- [Office]: +254-708-342197

Website: www.kelinkenya.org