Nepal and property rights
My mother died in 1970. We were six daughters. Before her death she used to advocate society for giving property share to daughters, however, everyone objected including women leaders of those days. She had engaged one lawyer for transforming part of the property to six daughters. Two of her heart valves were damaged and Nepal didn’t have medical facilities those days for such complications. She suffered from illness. Her days were counted. She was so ill and couldn’t go to legalize that property transfer document in the government legal office. She begged my father’s first cousin who was the first woman story writer of Nepal. Rest of the close relatives weren’t educated to handle legal processes. All the legal papers were ready, however, this aunt stopped and objected to my mother’s decision. She criticized my mother for going against social norms saying “if any of six daughters elopes with Chayemi or Pode the property would be looted by such people and your daughter will be kicked out”. Those days even so called women leaders were too conservative and charged my mother trying to break social norms. They used to say that handing property to daughters would mean allowing son in laws to loot the property and misuse of property. No one cared for daughters who were abused and kicked out by the families of the husband. My mother had gone around telling all relatives and friends saying she was “walking the TALk “and setting an example in the conservative society. The night she expired she was crying and begging me to call that writer auntie, however, I couldn’t go out because it was already late and there were no street lights on the road. After her death all the relatives and her friends would alyatalk about her wish to handover property to daughters, however, no one came forward to execute her wish. Before her death(1970 at the age of 48 leaving behind seven children at vulnerable age ) she always used to handle the complex cases of abuses faced girls and women in Nepalese society. She never went to school however people always praised her brilliance, resilience and other unique characterstics of her nature There’s policy for women’s rights over ancestral property in Nepal during marriage time that rights are taken away during by illiterate mothers by making her sign legal documents forbidding her to claim property. Many suicides and unnatural deaths could have been avoided had there been true literacy programs highlighting complications of marriage including law enforcement and on rights of girls and women in Nepal. Many families today mention my mother’s name whenever there are complications regarding complications of marriage and suffering of girls and women in Nepalese society.
Anyone who wishes to know more about my mother you may know through my interview https://youtu.be/xk1CtzqtQgQ?si=k3VH_vPS8dXFhOO4
https://youtu.be/sq49r8EvieI?si=Qzp2q0oQ9QFff3Qy