Desperate Co‐wives. The illegality of polygamy in the new Mozambican Family Law
Desperate Co‐wives. The illegality of polygamy in the new Mozambican Family Law
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Title:
Desperate co-wives: The Illegality of Polygamy in the new Mozambican Family Law
Setting up the stage
In 2004 Mozambique approved a new Family Law. The new law substituted a law instituted during the Portuguese colonial rule. It is promoted, mostly by feminist lawyers and activists, as being more in line with the Mozambican Constitution, several international legal instruments (particularly those regarding women’s rights), while at the same time reflecting Mozambican culture and identity. Polygamy 1 , which is a wide spread marriage practice in the country, particularly in the rural areas, remained illegal. The principal reason said to be be- hind the outlawing of the practice is the idea that polygamy, particularly in the Mozambican context, is a practice that is humiliating and diminishing to women. In this paper, I will argue that maintaining polygamy illegal may actually play against some of the women the law is trying to protect; particularly since the law does not eliminate per se the mechanisms of the patriarchal system that may compel women to accept, cope with and/or be trapped in polyga- mous relationships. I intend to explore experiences of polygamy as they are lived and how these experiences are affected by the new Family Law.
A mind setting event
I had just arrived to Mozambique to conduct fieldwork when an event became widely commented both in public and private spaces, and unwittingly made its way into my field of analysis. The event seemed on one hand to illustrate the complexities of marital relations in the country, while at the same time exposing the contradictions of the Family Law and its ability to respond to people’s interests; particularly those of women. It was of particular inter- est to my research because it was an example of how people eventually become entangled in situations that lead to polygamy. It also showed how the illegality of polygamy decreases are- nas for marital negotiation where women can defend acquired rights. The event was aired by the country’s biggest private TV station as primetime news, as follows:
‘Citizen abandons woman with whom he lived maritally for the past 12 years to marry another. However, at the place where they were to be wedded the ceremony turned into authentic chaos.’ (STV, Telejornal 28.06.07)
The news was accompanied by a picture of a man sitting and staring up with a ‘busted’ look in his eyes. A picture of his de facto wife holding an infant in her arms was then scrolled in. The journalist proceeded to explain that until the previous day the man in the picture had been living with the ‘young mother’ being shown in the picture, in a de facto relationship that had lasted 12 years and produced three children. On the day of the event the ‘young mother’ was confronted with news that her husband intended to marry another woman. She decided to go with her parents and other relatives to the Wedding Palace, where the ceremony was to be held, to prevent the wedding from taking place. The Wedding Palace is a remnant of the so- cialist secular ideology. It accommodated those who want a pompous wedding without the religious component. Jennifer McDowell (1974), one of the few authors to study religious phenomena in the Soviet socialist context explains:
‘In the course of time, the [Soviet civil] ceremonies have been intended to strengthen Soviet authority, to undermine traditional religious systems, to serve socializing agents in the incorporation of Soviet moral norms and the Soviet meaning system, and to more securely link the individual with political system. Less consciously, the ceremonies may serve as sources of social stability and the private ceremonies specifically as means of preparing individuals for different stages in the life cycle.’ (McDowell 1974: 265)
The Wedding Palace thus was the physical structure that facilitated the institution of marriage. Presently it is still part of the marriage scene in Mozambique, though religious ceremonies have regained prestige. However, mostly wealthier and prominent citizens marry in the pal- ace, due to the fees required to rent the space and pay for the solicitor. The appearance of a woman contesting a marriage in such a noble house was bound to attract journalists. And as ‘the young mother’ in the piece hoped for she got to say in public the rea- son she opposed the union of the couple:
‘He is my husband for 12 years now. I met him in 1995. We dated, and in 1997 we had out first child, a boy. The boy is named (x), after his father. Then I had the second child, a girl. This is when he came to my [parent’s] house to introduce himself. When I met him he didn’t work… He slept at home with me yesterday. He woke up in the morning… he set the alarm on my [cell]phone. He woke up at 6:00 [am]. I heated water for him to bathe. Then he got dressed and left. Said he was going to work. Hours later some girls came and told me [that he was about to get married to another one].’ (STV, Telejornal 28.06.08)
She later refers to the introduction of her ‘husband’ at her parent’s house as her ‘anelamento’ (engagement). The ‘anelamento’ is the ceremony that usually precedes the lobolo 2 , the actual ceremony between a man and woman and their respective kin. The lobolo has been equated to bridewealth, by which the man becomes attached to the woman’s family in a series of duties and obligations. One of the most important aspects of the lobolo is that it entitles the man to claim paternity of the children produced by the union (see Arnfred 2001, Bagnol 2006). For the woman this is important because she legitimises both her relationship and her children. The basic structure of the lobolo process has been retained throughout times, also in urban areas (Bagnol 2006). When the journalist asked if she knew he had a relationship with another woman she dis- missed his affairs as unimportant:
‘He has done so for years, but never with the same woman. At a certain point he even told me that [these relationships] didn’t really matter (…) Monday he asked for my en- gagement letter. He asked if I still had it. And I answered that I didn’t know where I had left it. Last night when he came [home], he took me in his arms and set me by his side and said: know that I never stopped loving you, I will always love you.’ (STV, Telejor- nal 28.06.08)
To everyone’s surprise, including that of the journalist, the solicitor argued in favour of the groom. She insisted that the woman present proof that she was indeed married to the man she claimed to be her husband. Under the new law all non-civil ceremonies should be transcribed into the civil books. Traditional ceremonies such as the lobolo should be witnessed and sanc- tioned by the local leader, to be recognised as official. It was highly unlikely that at the time her engagement, in 1997 – i.e. prior to the new law, the ceremonies included the transcription or any form of formal registry. Her inability to produce a document that could prove her claims meant that there was no legal impediment for the man to be wedded to the other wom- an. The solicitor explained her position in the following terms: ‘As for the children, it is an issue for the minor’s court. The minor’s court will deter- mine what the father should pay as alimony for the children.
As for (…), the house and other conditions that the lady is imposing, perhaps… [pause] that should be resolved within the family or she could even contact a court. But at THIS time, what I can tell you is that ‘having lived together and had children’ does not constitute impediment [for the civil wedding to be carried out with another spouse].’ (idem.)
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