Marriage Customs and Laws

• Lecture 7 discusses African marriage as an issue in development.
• The lecture was given by AK Awedoba in July 2016.

Importance of Marriage

• Marriage affects gender issues.
• Marriage involves various types and forms, depending on the culture.
• Forms of exotic marriages include infant betrothals, widow inheritance, ghost marriage, and sister exchange.
• Sexual rules pertaining to marriage involve exogamy, endogamy, and incest regulations.
• African marriages involve payment or exchange of bridewealth.

Perspectives of What is Marriage

• In southern Ghana, the term 'Engagement' is commonly used to refer to marriage.

Guinea Bissau Marriage

• In Guinea Bissau, a 14-year-old boy may be presented with a plate of ancient recipe by a girl, and refusing meant dishonoring his family.
• It is women, not men, who choose their partners.
• Marriage occurs when the groom tastes the fish marinated in red palm oil offered by the woman.

Defining Marriage

• A 1951 definition is "a union between a man and a woman, ensuring that children born to the woman are recognized as legitimate offspring of both partners."
• Implications include: pairing of two individuals, both living adults, union of opposite sex, aimed towards reproduction.
• This traditional definition does not accommodate all marriage practices known to Africans.
• The Catholic Church abides by this definition, but some westerners have moved on to recognize same-sex marriages.
• The traditional definition is unsatisfactory because African marriage involves natal families and unusual forms of marriages.

Exotic Forms of Marriage

• Child Betrothal: Some African societies allow infants to be given out in marriage (i.e. Ghana).
• Woman-Woman Marriage: A woman weds another woman resulting in female husbands, once widespread among African peoples like Lovedu, Nuer, and Dinka.
• Ghost Marriages: A woman may be married to a deceased person, or a ghost.
• Levirate: A widow is required to procreate with her deceased husband's younger brother, with the children recognized as her deceased husband's.
• Widow Inheritance: A deceased husband's brother marries the widow, also known as Sororate.
• Espousal to a Deity: A girl may be espoused to a god or its priest (i.e. trokosi).
• Polygyny: Men may be allowed to marry more than one wife, common in the past, with wives sometimes bringing their sisters, cousins, or nieces into the marriage.

Acceptability of Exotic Marriages

• Exotic marriages may infringe individual rights or deny choices.
• Some exotic marriages involve coercion or force, leading to objections.
• These marriages may pose problems for couples and children.
• If there are problems, then legitimate concerns for development exist.

Conjugal Rights and Obligations

• Marriage establishes rights and obligations between couples and families, regulated by social and cultural norms.
• Management of rights and obligations has implications for the well-being of spouses, children, and kin.
• A critical question is how far these rights and obligations account for social change and globalization.

Cohabitation

• Cohabitation traditionally was not endorsed and did not establish marital rights.
• The Property Rights of Spouses Bill recognizes cohabitation.
• Section 3(1) states that cohabitation refers to a situation in which a man and a woman hold themselves out to the public to be man and wife
• People cohabitating for five years or more shall be deemed to be spouses and have the rights of spouses.

Polygyny in Africa

• Polygamy is marriage to more than one person, also known as bigamy, which is illegal in the West.
• It is an infringement to individual choice if polygamy is not allowed.
• Many condemn polygyny as it is unfair to women.
• Case study: MPs in Kenya voted into law the practice of men having more than one wife.
• Traditionally, the husband needed consent from the first wife; today, that is now unnecessary.
• A ban on polygamy was deemed necessary by the Gender Minister in Malawi in order to prevent women from being abused in polygamous relationships, citing the issues arising because men could not give their undivided attention to multiple wives.
• The Muslim Association of Malawi stated this law would discriminate against the country's Muslim minority.
• Spokesman for the Muslim Association of Malawi reported that there are 6% more women than men in Malawi, stating that if polygamy were banned, many women would not be able to find husbands and would become prostitutes.
• Some parents and siblings of husbands see differently from the kinfolk of wives, citing benefits.
• Sierra Leone women traditionally encouraged polygyny, because men in monogamous relationships were not highly respected.
• Polygyny may lead to unsustainable family planning because wives competing to have the most children along with wasteful competition with wives demanding more than each other.

Reasons for Marrying

• Marriage may give confers status, prestige, and recognition, with unmarried adults denied full respect in many African societies.
• Marriage was a rite of passage marking the transition from childhood to responsible citizenship
• Economic Reasons: There is a rigid division of labor based on sex.
• Love/companionship is a reason (ex: an old couple).
• Procreation is a paramount reason.
• Alliances create marriages that were/are cement alliances within society.

Domestic Rights Abuses

• Domestic rights concerns are associated with marriage and are becoming a public concern (thanks to NGOs & women's groups).
• Domestic violence takes varied forms such as physical, psychological, and/or economical abuse.
• Domestic violence in Ghana has spurred laws for protection and prevention of abuses with the Domestic Violence Bill passed in 2007.
• Men have also reported being victims of domestic violence.
• Ghana established WAJU and Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU).
• A Ghana Multiple Cluster Survey (MICS) report revealed a significant percentage of women reported that wife beating was sometimes justified.
• 47% of rural Ghanaian women believed wife beating was justified.
• This percentage was highest in the Upper West region (76%) but lowest in Gt Accra region (28%).

Other Domestic Rights Abuses

Case of Levirate and Wife Inheritance:

• Intended to guarantee conjugal stability.
• Good intention questions: Is it by choice or coercion?
• Widow may choose among the dead husband's junior brothers in Northern Ghanaian communities, but she is not compelled.
• In a case example, four brothers assaulted their brother's widow for not marrying them.
• A lawyer fights 'widow sex' in Malawi.
• The 'widow' is expected to have sexual relations to cleanse her.
• Belief: if one is not cleansed, there is a chance she is cursed by the spirit of there deceased husband
• Instead of being forced, many widows are reported to "call for it".
• It was reported from Kenya that widows who did not wish to marry the brother-in-law could not prevent it.
• Unwilling brothers may be compelled morally to accept a widow if: He's happily married, religion forbids polygyny OR widow is too old/unattractive and therefore unappealing.

Infant Betrothals

• Dangers come among Konkomba & Bimoba, marriages that were once common.

Dangers of Infant Betrothals

• There is zero choice for the child.
• Elopements: On reaching their teens and discovering that the husband is too old, betrothed girls tend to elope with more desirable men; needless conflict precipitates.
• Teenage Marriages: Hasty, over anxious husbands fear of losing brides if did not consummate marriage quickly; implications may arise.
• Teenager dropouts occurs because affected teenage-brides often drop out of school willingly or under pressure causing issues of Teenage Mothers & Poor Health.

Forced Marriages in Northern Region

• Forced marriages are increasing in the Northern Region.
• Between 10-17: Most victims were between 10 to 17 years, in violation of the Children's Act (Act 560), the age-long customs.
• The practice was being fuel by the men who claimed to have invested in the upbringing of the girls.

Marriage Rules & Choice

• Societies have rules to regulate choice of partners.
• Development is about having the choice.
• Does exogamy, incest & endogamy affect marriage choices? Yes.
• Exogamy: Specifies that a person cannot marry someone in their kinship.
• Lineage and Clan are exogamic.
• Incest prohibits sex between people related by blood or marriage.
• Usually, the person from the immediate family, such as: parents, grandparents, siblings and their children.
• Incest applies to clan and lineage members.
• In most societies, incest is a moral and crime sanctioned as a sin.

Case

• A father impregnated daughter and lands in jail.
• A 45-year-old mechanic engaged in an incestuous relationship w his daughter.
• He impregnated her twice and attempted to abort multiple times.

Explore various marriage customs, including Levirate marriage and the practice of promising a girl to a god. Questions cover legal aspects like cohabitation rights and bigamy. Evaluate the acceptability of exotic marriage practices and arguments for polygyny.