The Jurisprudence of Vulnerability: Property Rights, Domestic Violence and HIV/AIDS Among Women in Uganda

Abstract:     
In Uganda a complex system linking property rights, domestic violence, and subordinating traditions leads to women's disproportionate vulnerability to HIV/AIDS infection. In order to dismantle this system we must recognize the gendered pattern of HIV/AIDS transmission and acknowledge that vulnerability to HIV/AIDS is the result of a patriarchal system of subordination. It is in the interstices between local custom and formal law that women suffer the effects of this system. Focusing on the situation in Uganda, this article examines cultural practices that contribute to women's disproportionate susceptibility to HIV/AIDS infection and posits that by relying on an international women's rights framework, grassroots organizations can support women's efforts to address HIV/AIDS, poverty and gendered violence.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 34

Keywords: Uganda, poverty and gendered violence, HIV/AIDS

working papers series