Key Points:
- Mary Rahube challenges apartheid-era laws denying land rights to Black women.
- A 2018 Constitutional Court ruling declared key legislation unconstitutional.
- Rahube now seeks formal registration of her long-time home in her name.
MABOPANE, South Africa — Mary Rahube, a grandmother from Mabopane, north of Pretoria, is taking the final step in her decades-long legal fight. She wants the court to officially recognize her as the rightful owner of the family home she has lived in for over 40 years.
Court to Decide on Historic Land Ownership Registration
Rahube, who is in her 70s, plans to petition the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria. She will request that the court register the house in her name. Her brother, Hendsrine Rahube, currently holds the deed. Apartheid laws once barred Black women from owning property, which led to his name being on the title.
Her legal battle led to a major victory in 2018. The Constitutional Court struck down part of the Upgrading of Land Tenure Rights Act. This decision declared the law unconstitutional. As a result, the case became a turning point for Mary Rahube land rights in South Africa’s post-apartheid legal history.
Apartheid Legacy Still Felt in Property Ownership
The Rahube family relocated to Mabopane in the 1970s after the government forcibly evicted them from Lady Selbourne. Their grandmother settled the family in the home. However, because of gender-based laws, she could not legally own it.
In 1987, the family nominated Hendsrine to receive a certificate of occupation. The following year, the government issued him a deed of grant. Years later, he went to court and tried to evict his siblings from what he called “his home.” This action pushed Mary Rahube to begin her lengthy legal campaign.
From the outset, Louise du Plessis of Lawyers for Human Rights supported Rahube. “This is the first court application under the new amendments since the Constitutional Court ruling,” Du Plessis explained.
A Symbolic Battle for Land Justice and Equality
In an earlier judgment, Judge Patricia Goliath emphasized that apartheid laws deeply disenfranchised African women. She said the combination of patriarchy and racially discriminatory legislation excluded them from land ownership.
Rahube agrees. She said the apartheid system and patriarchal values kept her from owning the only home she has ever known. Therefore, she believes she now deserves to hold the title deed. Her story powerfully illustrates the broader struggle for Mary Rahube land rights and justice in South Africa.
