Abstract
This chapter discusses the relationship between African feminism, land tenure and soil rights in Africa. It uses the lenses of African feminism, particularly the motherism brand, to provide a medium through which Africans can assert their rights to land and soil. It bases on a case of Uganda to critique the ideology of patriarchy which denies Africans automatic rights to land and soil or jus soli, through policy and the law. Automatic rights to land and soil would ensure that everyone in Africa is bonded to the land and soil as a mother is bonded to her child. Land and soil rights, which mean the same thing to an African, are contemporaneously acquired and are linked to citizenship rights, largely based on the principle of jus sanguinius. A general conclusion drawn is that in order to rectify the situation discussed African governments should use the lenses of African feminism to reconstruct policies and re-enact laws related to land ownership, soil and sustainable development. It recommends that African governments should review their land policies and laws, including constitutions, in order to grant land and soil rights to all Africans based on the principle of jus soli, while that of jus sanguinius should only be adopted in circumstances where it does not disadvantage any person. Future researchers should build on the analysis made herein and step up their advocacy drives to persuade African governments to undertake the necessary reforms in their land regulatory policies and laws.
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Notes
- 1.
Runyakitara language unites the people of the western region of Uganda right from the Lake Albert and River Nile moving southwards up to the borders with the Republic of Rwanda. Ethnicities in this region include the Banyoro, Batoro, Bakonjo, Bamba, Banyankore and Bakiga.
- 2.
See the Constitution of Uganda, 1995, Article 10 which provides: [T]he following persons shall be citizens of Uganda by birth (a) every person born in Uganda one of whose parents or grandparents is or was a member of any of the indigenous communities existing and residing within the borders of Uganda as at the first day of February, 1926, and set out in the Third Schedule to this Constitution; and (b) every person born in or outside Uganda one of whose parents or grandparents was at the time of birth of that person a citizen of Uganda by birth.
- 3.
The Constitution of Uganda, 1995, Article 11(1) provides: A child of not more than five years of age found in Uganda, whose parents are not known, shall be presumed to be a citizen of Uganda by birth. Article 11(2) provides: A child under the age of eighteen years neither of whose parents is a citizen of Uganda, who is adopted by a citizen of Uganda shall, on application, be registered as a citizen of Uganda.
- 4.
Perpetual interests in land and soil accrue to anyone who is, or who becomes a citizen of Uganda, without discrimination.
- 5.
Kagoda (2008).
- 6.
United Nations (1995).
- 7.
Government of Uganda, Land Policy (2013).
- 8.
Busingye (2012).
- 9.
Busingye (2017).
- 10.
Napikoski and Lewis (2018).
- 11.
For example, Chad, Lesotho and the United Republic of Tanzania, which have unrestricted jus soli, cannot be said to have the same problems associated with soil access rights like the majority of other African states which rely on the principle of jus sanguinius.
- 12.
FAO (2010).
- 13.
Wily (2011).
- 14.
Muinde (2013).
- 15.
Saunders (1990).
- 16.
Asiimwe (2001).
- 17.
Kandiyoti (1988).
- 18.
Mwale (2002).
- 19.
Asiimwe (2001).
- 20.
Coetzee (2017).
- 21.
Mwale (2002).
- 22.
Chopra and Mülle (2016).
- 23.
Kandiyoti (1988).
- 24.
Ibid.
- 25.
Valledor-Lukey (2012).
- 26.
Busingye (2017).
- 27.
Busingye (2017).
- 28.
Gingrich (1999).
- 29.
- 30.
Mays (2003).
- 31.
Chirisa et al. (2014).
- 32.
Nkealah (2016).
- 33.
Walker (1995).
- 34.
Slavchevska et al. (2016).
- 35.
Asiimwe (2001).
- 36.
Okonya and Kroschel (2014).
- 37.
German (1981).
- 38.
Ahmed (1999).
- 39.
Busingye (2017).
- 40.
Namubiru-Mwaura (2014).
- 41.
Chopra and Mülle (2016).
- 42.
Constitutional reforms in Uganda were contemporaneously adopted with the global agitation for women’s equal rights in all spheres at the various United Nations Women Conferences, including the Beijing Conference in 1995.
- 43.
Article 12 of the Constitution provides for acquisition of Ugandan citizenship by registration, while Article 13 provides for acquisition of Ugandan citizenship by naturalization.
- 44.
Article 14 of the Constitution provides for how Ugandan citizenship may be lost, namely: A person may be deprived of his or her citizenship if acquired by registration, on any of the following grounds: (b) voluntary service in the armed forces or security forces of a country hostile to or at war with Uganda; (c) acquisition of Uganda citizenship by fraud, deceit, bribery, or having made intentional and deliberate false statements in his or her application for citizenship; and (d) espionage against Uganda.
- 45.
Gaard (1993).
- 46.
Hartmann (1979).
- 47.
Ahmed (1999).
- 48.
Morris (1970).
- 49.
The Judicature Act, Cap. 13 (Uganda), section 14 (5).
- 50.
The Judicature Act, Cap. 13 (Uganda), section 15 (1).
- 51.
Mugambwa (2007).
- 52.
German (1981).
- 53.
Parpart (1995).
- 54.
Sebina-Zziwa (1999).
- 55.
Ahmed (1999).
- 56.
World Commission on Environment and Development (1987).
- 57.
Ibid.
- 58.
See Section 2 of the Land Act, Cap. 227, which restates the constitutional provisions: [S]ubject to article 237 of the Constitution, all land in Uganda shall vest in the citizens of Uganda and shall be owned in accordance with the following land tenure systems—(a) customary; (b) freehold; (c) mailo; and (d) leasehold.
- 59.
FIDH (2012).
- 60.
Tripp (2004).
- 61.
Benhabib (1993).
- 62.
The Constitution of Uganda under Article 237 (1) provides: (1) Land in Uganda belongs to the citizens of Uganda and shall vest in them in accordance with the land tenure systems provided for in this Constitution.
- 63.
United Organisation for Batwa (2015).
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Busingye, G. (2020). African Feminism, Land Tenure and Soil Rights in Africa: A Case of Uganda. In: Yahyah, H., Ginzky, H., Kasimbazi, E., Kibugi, R., Ruppel, O. (eds) Legal Instruments for Sustainable Soil Management in Africa. International Yearbook of Soil Law and Policy(). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-36004-7_8
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