KENYA: Our Women Never Had It So Good

A poll by Infotrack Harris indicates that women are likely to vote against the proposed constitution largely due to ignorance of its contents.

This is a very sad state of affairs. Those of us who have read through the draft document find it a masterpiece for promoting, enhancing and protecting women's rights. This will be a constitution for the women of Kenya.

Under freedom and security of the person, the draft outlaws all forms of violence against women. This includes domestic violence which has in the past left its victims dead, maimed or deformed.

The document also entrenches affirmative action programmes into the constitution, thus making it a right rather than a privilege as it is currently.

Section 38(3) of the draft makes registration as a voter a basic right and this will help women in places like Trans-Mara, East Pokot and other pastoralist areas where men keep crucial documents for women like identification cards and refuse to surrender them back to them during voter registration.

More important, the draft stops Parliament or any individual from arbitrarily depriving another of property. Section 45(3) states that parties to a marriage are entitled to equal rights at the time of marriage, during the marriage and at the dissolution of marriage.

At least it is going to be unconstitutional for your husband to send you away empty-handed after you have acquired property or developed premises jointly.

The culture of rogue in-laws storming your house after the death of your spouse and robbing you of your entire property will be a thing of the past.

The draft law under Section 68 (c ) (ii) directs Parliament to enact legislation to protect the dependants of the deceased holding interests in any land, including the interests of spouses in actual occupation of land.

If there is a document that provides Kenyan women with an opportunity and a platform to fully take part in the country's politics, this is the one.

In the county elections for senators, we start with 18 members and have the right to compete with men in the remaining 47 elective ones.

That means that we only need to strategise and elect 20 women to the Senate and that will enable us influence political and economic affairs.

Likewise, in the National Assembly, women start off with 47 of their own before competing for the 290 elective ones and the 12 for special interest groups.

Again if we mobilise ourselves, we could dominate the National Assembly. This is also replicated in the county assemblies and executive committees.

The draft law, if passed, will give us a perfect platform for negotiation for political and economic power. For example, men will have to choose whether to control the Senate or the National Assembly.

If they choose the Senate, then through their respective political parties, they must accept to field majority women candidates for the National Assembly.

In the counties, we will demand that in the event that a governor is a man, the senator should be a woman. This proposed constitution offers this opportunity.

It also demands that any child born out of wedlock has a right to parental support from both parents. This will help tame irresponsible men who father children and leave the burden of bringing them up to the mothers.