We have to do it, because no one else does

Morogoro Paralegal Centre (MPLC) uses a network of volunteers and paralegal district offices to empower women and children living in rural areas of Morogoro region. The centre provides the information and support needed by poor women and children to realise their rights in the areas of property inheritance, domestic violence and sexual abuse.

'This work has changed me a lot. Before I did not know anything about the law. Now I use what I have learnt in my personal life. It is about civil courage. You must show a good example yourself and you must speak up if you see people being mistreated. We have to practice what we preach'. Flora Masoy, Volunteer for 15 years and now Coordinator of MPLC.

Women and children in rural areas in Tanzania are often oppressed by traditional laws and customs. To help them live decent lives, MPLC offers counselling services, raises awareness about legal rights for the whole community and advocates for changes in traditional customs and laws that deny women and children their rights.

Since 1993, the organisation has run a legal aid clinic from its head office in Morogoro Town. Four paralegal district centres were established in late 2006, allowing MPLC to provide assistance, professional knowledge and advice to about 100 paralegal volunteers organised in groups in the greater Morogoro region. Two centres are situated in Mvomero and one in each Ulanga and Morogoro Rural.
A unique spirit of voluntarism and commitment drives the work of MPLC. Moreover, there is a strong sense of ownership as three of the founding members still work for the organisation. One of them is the present Coordinator, Flora Masoy.
Women’s access to land and land rights is a key focus of the centre’s activities.

Adjustment to growth
MPLC’s capacity to provide legal advice for women has increased due to a growing number of paralegals and funding from different donors. Over the years, the centre has combined this growth with a sharper strategic focus and refinement of its structure. In 2006 the organisation prepared its first strategic plan, which is an important guide in the preparation of project proposals as well as the selection of donors and strategic network partners.

While preparing the strategic plan, MPLC also made organisational improvements designed to make more efficient use of scarce resources. The main outputs were a new organisational structure, a definition of the new district structure and a decision to give higher priority to annual general meetings. Also, MPLC has ensured a strong voice for paralegals at the district centres by electing their representatives to a new Governing Council.

A lawyer – a milestone
Although some time has passed since the definition of the new organisational setup, it has yet to be fully implemented as there are insufficient numbers of staff to divide the work into departments. However, things are looking up. A lawyer was employed at the beginning of 2008 and the organisation is in the process of contracting a project officer, a secretary and an accountant.

To have its own lawyer is a milestone for MPLC – one of the reasons being that it is now able to manage more complicated cases. An example comes from Tuliani where a house girl was in police custody because the house owner accused her of stealing. The truth was that, although he had not paid her any salary for six months other than food and a bed, he managed to bribe the police to accept a theft case. At the time the district paralegals and the lawyer became involved, the girl had already been locked up for five weeks without trial. MPLC called on its contacts in the media, who called the Regional Police Commander to find out what was going on. The RPC called the police in Tuliani and the girl was released the same day. The lawyer also managed to make the house owner pay the girl's salary so that she could take a bus back to her home in Dodoma. Without the lawyer and the help from the media, MPLC would probably not have been able to solve the case.

Setting up district centres
The new paralegal district centres bring services closer to the beneficiaries and allow improved monitoring of ongoing activities and coordination of the work of the paralegal groups at ward level. An important reason for establishing district offices has also been to give the paralegals their own identity. Previously, they often used the facilities of public institutions such as a room at a hospital, a school or at a local government office, leaving the beneficiaries confused about where the advice came from.

The main task of the district centres is to provide legal advice and counselling and to assist women to file court cases. As a lawyer is required to draft legal documents, the paralegals assist clients in finding one. Whereas previously MPLC could only provide advice, now MPLC’s own lawyer can draft legal documents for clients. If the district paralegals are unable to solve a case, the client is referred to the head office. The centres monitor human rights violations, reporting both to head office and to the Legal & Human Rights Centre in Dar es Salaam and also work closely with Village Land Committees to solve land rights cases. Finally they assist the head office whenever a programme activity is initiated by preparing focus group discussions and acquiring permits to perform theatre plays, among other things.

Setting up an office in each district was not a big deal. It only required a table, a few chairs and a bench so the paralegals can meet and provide legal advice to clients. The challenging task has been and still is to build management and organisational capacity at the centres in such areas as planning, reporting, organising client registers and recording advice given.

The low level of education of some of the district paralegals is also a constraint, making it difficult to teach complicated planning tools. One experience gained is that the capacity to run an office differs from district to district. In one district the paralegals have taken the initiative to establish groups and open offices at ward level on their own, while the paralegals in another district wait for the head office to provide money, even though they are supposed to help provide funding themselves.

Volunteers ensure outreach
In order to achieve its mission to improve living conditions for women and children who are discriminated against in rural areas, MPLC must educate rural people and empower them to take action for change themselves. The success of the organisation depends on its ability to engage committed volunteers. Voluntary paralegals provide essential outreach and increase the impact of activities.

Other benefits include improved direct connections with communities, a strong commitment to improve women’s rights due to easy identification with problems and improved results with land rights cases where paralegals have been actively involved.

'We must do it because nobody else does', says Anna Alimasi from Sokoine Village in Mvomero District. Some years ago her husband died, and she ended up having a hard struggle with his relatives to keep the right to their land. She was recommended to ask MPLC for help, and via their support she was able to take her case to court. Now she has her own plot of land and one of her three children is in secondary school. Had it not been for the voluntary network of paralegals, Anna would probably not have been able to access her rights. Today, Anna Alimasi is a paralegal herself. Based on the support given to her, she is able to help other women in similar situations. Also, training on land issues has enabled her to mediate land conflicts. She is now a member of the Village Land Committee. 'My eyes are opened and I want others to experience the same. It is important to be open and learn about the rights of women among the Maasai. I became a paralegal myself because I have seen how others helped when no one else did. As a paralegal I give counselling on human rights, in fact it is part of my work in the Village Land Committee. We meet every Tuesday and Friday to discuss cases. I think we have about 10 cases a month. If we cannot solve them here, we take them to the MPLC head office in Morogoro', Anna says.

To prepare the volunteers for their work as paralegals, MPLC provides regular training in laws such as the Village Land Act and the Marriage Act as well as on how to give evidence in court. During training sessions the paralegals are always given the opportunity to share difficult cases and best practices in order to enable them to learn from each other. MPLC also provides assistance, professional knowledge and advice to the paralegal groups. Monitoring and follow-up on the work at the district offices is done through visits, where activities are discussed and monthly reports written.

One of the paralegals in Sokoine Village in Mvomero District explains the importance of training people to apply their skills locally: ‘It is easier in the long run if we manage to solve a conflict at the lowest level. We have a lot of minor local conflicts and if we can solve them ourselves, chances are that problems will not escalate.'

However, training volunteers to be paralegals is not enough. MPLC is conscious of the importance of inviting government representatives so that they can benefit from the training and establish personal connections. 'MPLC has very good relationships with the local government, especially at ward and village level and our paralegals work closely together with them. They can see the benefit of our work and it encourages them to perform as well', says Advocacy and Networking Adviser Christoph Lodemann. He has worked with MPLC for three years, placed and funded by MS Tanzania. 

Profile of volunteers
But who are these people who dedicate their time to work as volunteers? At the head office some are teachers, while in the districts they are mainly people who know from experience what it takes to fight for a right and want to help others do likewise. In other words, many volunteers are role models. Fifty-five percent are women. Recruitment of volunteers usually happens through people coming to the office asking for voluntary work. Also, volunteers suggest others that they think might be good at the job.
However, many new volunteers come with misconceptions about the work. If their need for money is bigger than their commitment to the cause they usually do not stay for long. A few volunteers remain committed to working for women’s rights and these are the highly motivated people that MPLC retains.

MPLC has no problems relying on volunteers. 'They are dedicated and feel ownership towards MPLC. However, there is a limit to how much we can push them. We try to make agreements with volunteers to define their responsibilities and time commitment, but this has proven to be very difficult', says Christoph Lodemann.

An example for others
Voluntarism, commitment and civic empowerment are big words, but they are not only used by MPLC. The Director of the Foundation for Civil Society (FCS), John Ulanga, says: ‘We should learn from MPLC. It has a passion to help communities and the happiness of being able to help. The fight against poverty cannot be won if we do not address women.'

Flora Masoy follows up and explains how helping families to be happy promotes poverty reduction:
'People in the rural areas really benefit from sensitisation because it reduces conflicts. If a woman is not allowed to speak up, she will become discouraged and unhappy. Lack of dialogue between a wife and a husband creates insecurity in the household and creates poor conditions for raising children. Development starts at household level. If the family is happy and everyone respects each other there is space for development.'

Advocacy and Networking Adviser, Christoph Lodemann, explains: 

'Very few organisations can reach far into a rural area without voluntary work and engagement. MPLC’s most important strength is the volunteers in the villages. Without these volunteers living close to the beneficiaries, only a small impact would be achieved. MPLC is unique in having many paralegals and human rights monitors in the field. This is an incredible strength and it is important to focus on how to maximise the benefit gained from them.'

Making ends meet
Even though MPLC has found a unique way of reaching its target group, it is also aware of the challenges it faces managing one head office, four paralegal offices in three districts and about 100 voluntary paralegals at ward level. One of these is the fact that the district offices operate in different surroundings. Therefore, each requires a different management approach. Ulanga District started with a district office and has just started establishing paralegal sub-groups. Mvomero is the opposite. There are strong groups in every ward with representatives at village level, thus allowing the district office in Mvomero to stand back a little and play a more coordinating role.

The new structure bringing MPLC’s services closer to the beneficiaries is not fully implemented and the effects still remain to be seen. Frequent monitoring visits and capacity building of the rural paralegals will be important to ensure progress. The planned expansion of staff should enhance MPLC’s capacity and enable it to more effectively assist the paralegal groups in the rural districts. A new two-year land rights project with FCS is expected to contribute to the capacity of the organisation. From experience, MPLC knows that new funds increase the need to improve organisationally. Flora agrees that this process is healthy but admits that the challenge of building the centre’s capacity and attracting new volunteers is not easy. 'Capacity building and legal training of our volunteers is a constant challenge that will never end. Not only do we recruit new volunteers, but changes in the laws require that we regularly update their knowledge', she explains.

MPLC also faces the challenge of implementing the focus area commitments outlined in the strategic plan. The plan concerning land rights is well under way due to funding from FCS and MS Tanzania, while the fight to reduce violence against women has suffered due to lack of funding. Also, the continuous operation of the legal aid clinic in Morogoro Town needs to be secured.

One way to enable the district centres to fundraise and to open their own bank accounts is to register them as Community Based Organisations (CBOs). The registration process has already been initiated. Further training of the district paralegals in management and organisational skills is also needed. This will further improve the services provided to paralegals and beneficiaries and enhance the ongoing monitoring of activities

Long-term planning provides stability
MPLC has come a long way since 1993, when it started as a small organisation. It has grown steadily and continuously. Also, MPLC has gained a lot of experience over the years from working with women, rights, land – and voluntarism. Flora concludes that support from MS Tanzania has made it easier to work with volunteers and to address organisational challenges. She explains that, apart from the support MPLC has received from FCS, the support from MS is different from their general support:

'The donors we have worked with before usually gave small amounts of financial support on a project by project basis. The co-operation with MS Tanzania is different in the sense that we sit down and decide plans and activities with the Programme Officer. We have a mutual dialogue. MS offers long-term financial support, meaning we are sure about what we have and that makes planning possible. Another thing is that other donors do not support administration. MS does - and that reduces insecurity. The benefit of long-term planning is the sustainability of our work. It helps us to focus and it enables us to provide a better service.'

Land and Women - still the need for empowerment
Since 2004 MPLC has implemented activities to support women’s rights to land in Mvomero District. Among the activities are legal counselling by the paralegal volunteers; training of representatives from Village Land Committees; and sensitisation through theatre performances in all divisions of the district. In order to identify the future need for interventions, MPLC conducted a survey on ‘Women’s access to land' in the two villages of Sokoine and Kunke. The survey was carried out in 2006 and funded by MS Tanzania.

The findings show that only 0.2%, or 3 women, in Sokoine village owned land. In Kunke village the numbers were 0.3% and 5 women respectively. Seven of the women inherited the land after their husband died and one managed to acquire it through her own means. None of the respondents knew of any married couples who have entered into joint land ownership and they did not know about this possibility.
Also, the survey shows how difficult it is to reach women and to fight against cultural and traditional beliefs that keep them subordinate in the family hierarchy. Traditionally all property is inherited by the husband’s family or the eldest male child, leaving the wife and girls with nothing. In these cases women have to go back to their parents or marry another man.

The Village Land Act overrides customary law if it denies women their right to use, transfer and own land. However, the survey proves that many women are not aware of this and that they do not understand why they should own land themselves. 'I do not need to own land. When my husband dies I will just marry another man', one woman said. Fortunately, some women see the advantages of owning their own land but often the system does not consider them. Though women applied for land offered in Kunke village, all of it was given to men.

In other words, women still have little access to land in spite of the national laws, the Village Land Act 1999 and the Marriage Act. One of the reasons is that Tanzania has a pluralistic legal system, meaning that traditions - tribal as well as religious - are accepted as law unless they are appealed to the legal system, where national law is applied. Family cases are often resolved using customary laws depending on the cultural context and often they do not favour women. However, if they appeal to the court the national law is used, respecting their rights. This is why paralegals are so important in rural areas.

The survey illustrated the ongoing need to inform and educate rural communities about the legislation, their rights and how to solve conflicts. Certainly, women need awareness and empowerment. The survey also proved that awareness raising should be supported by sensitisation campaigns addressing other issues oppressing women such as bride prices and early marriages. 'Traditions will change over time. Nevertheless, there is a need to address specific traditions that oppress women and to facilitate rapid change improving women’s rights to access land', says Flora.

MPLC continues to raise awareness
The number of land conflict cases handled by MPLC has increased from 122 in 2006 to 283 in 2007. The organisation sees this increasing number of cases as a positive sign, demonstrating that women are becoming more aware of their rights and that inheritance traditions are in a transition phase.

MPLC continues its work to make rural women in Mvomero and Morogoro Rural Districts aware of their land rights through theatre performances and flyers containing information about the issue. In 2008 a play about land rights was performed twice to audiences of 300 to 350 people. Furthermore, a seminar for Village Land Committees and village leaders was conducted in order to improve their knowledge and as an incentive for cooperation.

Looking to the future, MPLC received a strategic grant from the Foundation for Civil Society (FCS) in late 2008 to fund a two year project aimed at facilitating land ownership for more women. The project has been planned using the findings of the survey on women’s land ownership. It will focus on joint land ownership between husband and wife, and it will assist women who own land to have their ownership documented.

The strategic grant from FCS means that work already initiated can continue.

Another issue MPLC addresses in regard to land is pastoralist rights. A project focusing on conflict reduction between pastoralists and farmers has been initiated. It also focuses on traditions that oppress women and aims to give pastoralist women a stronger public voice. MPLC has also addressed women’s rights concerning HIV/AIDS. HIV prevention for widows has been organised through training of trainers and, in order to establish a better inheritance position for women, training on how to write a will has been conducted. MPLC still assists women who have legal disputes due to their status of being HIV positive.