January 29, 2009 -- A group of Maghreb women's associations launched a plan of action in Tunis on Saturday (January 24th) to promote equal shares of inheritance for men and women.

The new plan came to conclude a two-day seminar held at the headquarters of the Association of Democratic Women, with support from the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM). Representatives from women's associations in Tunisia, Morocco, Mauritania, and Algeria decided to intensify their efforts on both the local and regional levels to shed light on the cost of inequality in inheritance, and to confirm that it is a stark form of discrimination against women.

The seminar, entitled "Nothing justifies discrimination in inheritance", stressed the need to boost the alliance among Maghreb women and to implement a unified plan targeting civil society associations and organisations working towards equality in inheritance. Participants also agreed to mobilise religious experts, as well as artists, academics and lawmakers.

After reviewing the legislative texts of each country, the attendees concluded that personal status laws and regulations are marred by gender inequality across the Maghreb.

Still, participants recognised the advances made towards equality under the law in Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco. New legislation allows for the writing of a will or gift-giving, which "enable people to circumvent inheritance law and give their daughters, through these wills, rights equal to those of males", explained Morocco's Nabia Haddouch, president of a women's association.

Mauritania’s Aminatou bent Mokhtar, president of Female Breadwinners Association, complained about injustices in the Mauritanian family code.

"Our disappointment was great after its adoption," bent Mokhtar said about the code, "because it added a lot of negative points, such as confirming polygamy, although the practices and customs in Mauritanian society do not allow it."

Bent Mokhtar added that the Mauritanian family code, ratified by Parliament in 2001, was derived from the old Moroccan law, which women had no role in drafting.

"We weren't invited to participate in drafting its articles. Clerics and conservative politicians supervised its preparation," she concluded.

"I don't think that depending on the public will achieve our aspirations," said Hayet, a Tunisian emergency doctor. "The 'street' today is under the domination of a wave of fundamentalism that is supported by Arab satellite TV channels."

Hayet believes it would be more effective to go directly to decision makers and to pressure them. She also raised the question of whether the discussion of the issue of inheritance would be made from within the religious system or whether the discussion would draw from man-made laws and international treaties.

According to Sanaa Benachour, professor of law and President of the Tunisian Association of Democratic Women, women never filed lawsuits to protest discrimination in the distribution of inheritance, "even though Tunisian law stresses the right to equality."

Tunisian lawyer Alya Chammari complained about the absence of ijtihad in the Tunisian judiciary system, which is based on sharia for inheritance-related issues.

"We also have to change our means of defence of the issue of inheritance," said Khadija Cherif, lawyer and former president of the Association of Democratic Women. "Years ago, there was a campaign against wearing the veil, but the results were reversed and the number of veiled women just increased."