Family law reform in Sudan: competing claims for gender justice between Sharia and women’s human rights

This report on family law reform in Sudan focuses on the competing claims for gender justice between sharia and women’s human rights in Sudan. The authors explore the history of family law reform in Sudan, including the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) that ended Africa’s longest running civil war. They also discuss the challenges facing Sudan in terms of balancing sharia law and women’s human rights, including the fact that the 2005 reform stipulates that an adult woman remains under the lifelong tutelage of a male guardian. The report examines the strategies used by women’s rights activists in Sudan to reform the Personal Status Law, including selectively using existing interpretations of Islamic law. Finally, the authors conclude that while there have been some positive developments in family law reform in Sudan, there is still a long way to go to achieve gender justice.

This report was originally published by the Christen Michelsen Institute (CMI).