"I took care of my sick parents for years, I even left home at the age of 16 and moved to Belgrade in order to work and earn money for them." And then, many years later, my mother convinced me to give up my inheritance in favor of my brother. She left me a total of two gold chains, worth a little less than 100 euros together. That's why my younger brother got everything. Two fields, a family house and a cottage on the lake," a resident of Nišlijka, who wished to remain anonymous, told "Vreme".
Years later, she still doesn't know what she could have done differently.
"Anyway, no one would support me, so I didn't even fight," she says. Her story it is not an exception or a rarity.
"She will definitely get married, she doesn't need it" or "after all, he is a man, everything goes well for him" are some of the classic messages that maintain gender inequality in society, and leave a large number of women without any property.
"What is my share?"
Precisely because of the frequency of such cases, the Coalition for Fair Inheritance, together with Women's association of the Kolubara District (ŽUKO), has been running a campaign called "How big is my share?" for some time.
Katarina Ranković, a member of the Women's Association of the Kolubara District, revealed in an interview for "Vreme" that, according to research by this organization, about 43 percent of women in Serbia decide to renounce their inheritance, most often due to family pressure or traditional customs.
"Although the law guarantees equal rights, in practice it often happens that women give up their share of inheritance in favor of male family members. The aim of the campaign is to inform and empower women to recognize their rights and to encourage them to exercise them," explains Ranković.
Renunciation of inheritance leaves numerous financial, psychological and emotional consequences for women. Especially in those cases when they are forced to do something like this.
"Without assets, women are often financially dependent, which can make it difficult to provide security for themselves and their children." Also, the lack of assets can limit opportunities for investing in education, starting your own business or achieving other life goals", he says.
Patriarchy among the younger generation too
Patriarchal beliefs, stereotypes and the glorification of male children within families have taken hold also when it comes to younger generations. According to research by the Commissioner for the Protection of Equality, 47 percent of citizens believe that men should have priority during inheritance, while only 33 percent support equality in the inheritance process.
"These data indicate that, despite some developments, there is still significant room for education and a change in awareness, especially among the younger generations because they most often have not gone through the property distribution process and then the awareness would be at the right time," said Ranković.
Stereotypes stronger than the law
The Law on Inheritance was passed more than 70 years ago, and with it, women and men became completely equal in inheritance rights. Legal norms, it seems, are not too important. They were overruled by customs and gender stereotypes.
Ranković explains that we can achieve long-term changes only through a long-term struggle with stereotypes.
"In order to reduce this practice, it is necessary to provide support to women through raising awareness and so that they are aware of their rights and ways to exercise them." Also, work on changing entrenched gender stereotypes through the media and the education system. It is necessary to organize public events where we would break the entrenched stereotypes that encourage the maintenance of customs like this."
The Kolubara District Women's Association also provides free legal assistance to women who are in probate proceedings, and the Coalition for Equal Inheritance was founded, which gathers 15 organizations from all over Serbia.
"These activities are crucial for the empowerment of women and the promotion of gender equality in society. With the establishment of the Coalition for Equal Inheritance, the possibility was created for all of us to influence inheritance practices together. It is one of the first steps towards changing social norms.”
