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The Global Land Rights Challenge: Which Groups Are Being Forgotten?
In today's society, the issue of land rights is receiving more and more attention. Land law is the legal form that regulates people's use, transfer or exclusion of others' claims to land. Depending on the jurisdiction, this property is often referred to as "real property" or "real estate." However, despite the existence of the legal system, in practice many people still face challenges in claiming their rights, especially when certain communities remain marginalized. In this context, it is worth pondering: Which groups are still forgotten when it comes to land rights?
Land rights and interests are the basis of social and economic development and directly affect the quality of life and social status of individuals.
Land use agreements, including leases, are the intersection of property law and contract law. Real estate rights not only involve an individual’s right to use the land independently, but also include how to manage and deal with the resources on the land. In many countries, disputes over land sovereignty often arise from deviant understandings of land rights, and in some places, indigenous peoples and poorer groups face even more severe challenges.
Indigenous land rights
International law recognizes the land rights of indigenous peoples, and these rights are considered "indigenous rights" in common law and civil law countries. Despite legal norms, indigenous groups often encounter cultural and social structural barriers to enforcing these rights. These barriers, such as legal inequalities, cultural practices and economic difficulties, contribute to their lack of land ownership.
The lack of land rights not only affects individual economic security, but also reflects inequality in the social structure.
The ownership and use of land is not only an indicator of economic development, it is also crucial to the acquisition and protection of the resources needed by individuals and groups, and to the recognition and protection of people's rights. According to the United Nations Global Land Tool, rural landlessness is often an obvious cause of poverty and hunger, and these issues have long received insufficient attention.
Challenges of women’s land rights
More and more research shows that women’s lack of land rights not only affects their families, but also has a negative impact on the overall development of society. Women who own land can increase their economic power and distribute resources more equitably within their households. Many case studies point out that if women can obtain adequate land rights, their quality of life will be significantly improved and social problems will be reduced.
Owning land is not only the control of resources, but also an important way for individual self-protection and economic independence.
For example, in India, although women legally have the right to own land, due to the deep-rooted patriarchal system, they actually own very little land. Even if the law allows it, many traditional and cultural constraints still exist, making women have to rely on men for basic survival. Once a family encounters an emergency, such as illness or death, women often face the crisis of losing their land and even their livelihood security.
Inequality in land rights from a global perspective
Women’s land rights challenges exist not just in India but across the world. For example, although the constitution of Uganda clearly stipulates that men and women have equal rights to acquire land, in fact, women are still excluded from land ownership. According to research by Women Land United Africa, when women purchase land, the ownership of the land is often registered in the name of their husbands. This gender inequality further strengthens their economic dependence.
When legal commitments fail to be translated into reality, individuals’ quality of life and rights protection are greatly violated.
In order to solve the problem of unequal land rights, comprehensive reforms must be carried out at the legal and social levels, including educating women about their land rights and developing and improving appropriate legal frameworks to protect the rights and interests of all groups, especially vulnerable groups. . In this process, not only legal support is needed, but also social and cultural changes are needed so that every member can enjoy equal land rights under legal protection.
However, these challenges do not only exist in the corners of the law. Cultural taboos and institutional flaws are also important reasons for the inequality of land rights. In the pursuit of land fairness and rights protection, can we truly break down existing obstacles and allow all marginalized groups to speak out and obtain the rights they deserve?
