New marriage law ushers in radical changes

new Marriages Act passed into law by President Mnangagwa in May after going through the House of Assembly and Senate has come as a huge relief for women as the law can now sufficiently protect their property rights upon divorce or death of the significant other, legal experts have said.

The new marriage law, which puts all marriage laws under one umbrella, thereby making it possible to convert a registered customary union into a civil marriage, is still to come into operation. The President needs to fix the date by notice in the Government Gazette.

This law has brought sweeping changes to the marriage laws in Zimbabwe with the Marriage Act and Customary Marriages Act being repealed, replaced and extended by the Marriages Act. Besides resetting the minimum age for marriage at 18, and insisting that regardless of the type of marriage, both parties need to give their unqualified consent, the new Act also introduces a civil partnership assumed where a couple lives together, and important when it comes to its termination.

Further, it recognises an unregistered customary law union as a marriage although desires that this is registered.

The civil partnership is new and relates to a man and woman staying together without payment of lobola or any ceremony or registration, that is cohabiting (small houses and the like), and it does not matter whether one or both of those involved is married to someone else. This also applies to boyfriends and girlfriends living together (kuchaya mapoto).- The Herald