Help Me Get Justice From My Late Husband

My name is Elizabeth Magosi. I am a 66 year old mother of 3 and grandmother of 6. I need your help in raising funds to help me fight a legal battle that resulted from my late husband’s infidelity.

I was 19 years old when I got married to my late husband in 1978. My marriage was arranged by our two families. It was in 1978 that I gave birth to my 1st born daughter and 1982 when I gave birth to my 2nd daughter. My marriage was abusive that in 1986 I had birth complications that led to the infant death of my 3rd born child, my son. After the loss of my son, the abuse from my husband persisted and got worse. It was in January 1989 that I decided to leave my matrimonial home with my two children. This was after my late husband threatened to shoot and kill both my children and himself in one of the altercations we had. I then took my children back home to stay with my relatives. 

After a few months my I found it difficult to travel in between provinces to visit my children and they had made me aware that they were being ill treated. I then decided to fetch them. I consulted with social workers and the mediated. It was decided that my children would stay with my late husband during the week and with me during weekends and school holidays. 

Shortly after I had moved out, my husband’s girlfriend, whom he had an affair with during our marriage, moved into our matrimonial home. My late husband and I continued to talk amicably regarding matters that concerned our children. Around 1994/5 my late husband’s girlfriend moved out and my husband continued staying with one of my daughters as I stayed with the other one. 

In 2010 my husband was unwell and I came back to our matrimonial home to take care of him. I was doing this because I believed I was fulfilling my duties as a wife. Later that year my husband went to the magistrates court to get an order to kick myself and my daughters out of the house. It was in January 2011 that an order for us to leave the house was made by the magistrate. 

In July 2020 my husband passed away and that is when I discovered that he had divorced me without my knowledge and remarried. According to the documents that the other wife has, my late husband filed for divorce and the case was heard at the Johannesburg High Court on the 6th March 1991. The summons were signed at our matrimonial home on the 12th September 1990 at 09:07, which at the time I was not staying in our matrimonial home. But my late husband’s girlfriend was staying there with him and the children. The order was granted with me being a defendant in default. There has been 2 decrees of divorce submitted by my late husband’s wife. One granted on 09th August 1990 and one granted on the 06th March 1991. 

As it stands, she has obtained letter of executorship, which I already obtained in 2021. She excluded my 2 daughters from being part of beneficiaries as per the interstate succession Act. She claimed my late husband’s funeral benefit from the GEPF when she did not even bury him, my children and I did. She has further made an instruction that I should pay rent from my house that is in my name and my late husbands’ from the day he passed on to date. 

I have since approached different law practitioners to assist. I have found legal practitioners to assist. However, the fees are too expensive for us to be able to cover without getting into huge debt. Failure to get help, may lead to the loss of my matrimonial home and not getting the justice. 

I would appreciate any contribution towards helping me get justice and my dignity. 

Thank you,

Elizabeth Magosi