A00 Gender & Society

GENDER AND LAW https://scroll.in/article/1071042/why-family-laws-are-usually-patriarchal-an-evolutionary-perspective Family laws or personal laws are rules that govern marriage, birth, inheritance, child custody and rights and obligations of spouses. Whether family laws are formulated based on religion or by a secular state, they have, historically, tended to be discriminatory in favour of men. As this 2012 World Bank report, based on a study of family law in 70 countries, notes, sharia laws were codified in Egypt around the same time that the secular Swiss Civil Code and the Turkish Code were formulated. But the legal status of women differed little across these laws. What makes the family so potent for women’s unequal status? Feminists have convincingly argued that sex and power are the two central cogs in the wheel of patriarchy, the system by which men exercise power over women. One of the ways to do this is by controlling women’s sexuality. This is central to family law, which regulates how, when, and with whom women bear children. But this does not address the core issue of patriarchy: why do men desire power over women or want control over their sexuality? To get to the root of patriarchy and effectively resolve inequality between the sexes, it is important to explain the motivations behind seeking power and control. Christian personal law, until 2001, had different rules of divorce for men and women – men needed only one valid reason for divorce, women needed more; Muslim personal law grants male heirs twice the share of female heirs and permits only the male to be polygamous; under the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, the property of a woman who dies without making a will goes to her children and husband and, in their absence, to the heirs of the husband (not her parents). by Raheel Dhattiwala 26/07/2024