ConCourt outlaws child marriage!

Give them books, not husbands...

LISBON TAWANDA CHIGWENJERE

Last year, the Day of the African Child commemorations were held under the theme, “25 years after the adoption of the African Children’s Charter: Accelerating our Collective efforts to end Child Marriage in Africa.” Last year, the African Union also declared 2015 to be the year of women’s empowerment. This year, Zimbabwe has taken a giant step towards the empowerment of young people (especially young women) by outlawing child marriage and striking off the statutes in Section 22(1) of the Marriage Act, which, for decades, had allowed children under the age of 18 years to formally get married.

The ConCourt on Wednesday 20 January 2015 ruled that Section 22(1) of the Marriage Act was inconsistent with Section 78(1) of the new Constitution, which sets 18 years as the minimum age of marriage in Zimbabwe and, as such, should be outlawed. The ruling was put in motion by an application filed by two young Zimbabwean women, Loveness Mudzuru (19) and Ruvimbo Tsopodzi (18), who approached the court challenging the Customary Marriages Act. These two young history makers were forced into early marriages through the unregistered customary law union.

Mudzuru, a mother of two and Tsopodzi, who has one child, were both married at the age of 15 while they were still going to school. In their affidavits, they argued that the law in terms of sections 20 and 22 of the Marriage Act (chapter 5:11), provided for a girl between the age of 16 and 18 to be married with joined consent of her mother and father. While stating that in terms of the Customary Act (chapter 5:07), there is no specified marriage age for persons intending to contract a customary law marriage and that the legitimate age of marriage in Zimbabwe should be 18.

Two days ago, the court ruled: “With effect from January 20, 2016, no person, male or female, may enter into marriage, including an unregistered customary law union or any other union including the one arising out of religion or religious rite, before attaining the age of eighteen (18) years.”

This means that the environment has changed - "game rachinja, shiri yabvuta rekeni" (the game has changed - the bird now holds the catapult). Children have been empowered, and this is a commendable move. It will ensure that the rights of children are protected. However, it is not the end, but a means to an end.

Child marriage is one of the biggest causes of school drop outs among girls in Zimbabwe, especially those in the marginalized areas. Child marriage, according to UNICEF, is a formal marriage or informal union before age 18, a reality for both boys and girls, although girls are disproportionately the most affected. Cases of young girls in Zimbabwe whose education has been hindered by child marriages are numerous.

Zimbabwe is a signatory to the Declaration on the Rights and Welfare of the African Child known as the African Charter on the Rights of Children. There is a provision within the Charter which requires that state parties should do everything possible to prevent child marriages.

The government should put in place more programmes to end this practice, so that young girls can have access to education and employment. This will help in reducing poverty and hunger in Africa.


Lisbon Tawanda Chigwenjere is a student of Politics and Public Management at the Midlands State University, in Zimbabwe. He is a former intern at the Youth Empowerment and Transformation Trust (YETT)