Issa Toure
19 January 2008
analysis
Arusha — The term "polygamy" refers to the practice of one man having more than one wife at the same time. This is how the term is used by several writers. There are other definitions of polygamy which are more elaborated and more complex.
Polygamy is a controversial issue. In some countries polygamy is authorized by the law of the State and in other countries polygamy is illegal.
Polygamy is not admitted by Christianity but it is authorized by Islam. However, the Holy Koran, sacred book of the Islamic religion, limits the number of wives to four. The Koran also stipulates that the husband must treat his wives fairly.
People who support the practice of polygamy develop several arguments as justification. The following are some of these arguments:
Polygamy is a response to a shortage of men giving that there are naturally more women than men in the world.
Polygamy is useful because there is an increase in the number of widows and orphans after unfortunate events such as wars, guerrillas, rebellions or any other type of armed conflicts. Out of solidarity surviving men may be advised to support widows by marrying them. This circumstantial polygamy is helpful to the concerned widows and their orphan children. It is also beneficial to the stability and balance of the whole community.
In rural areas, polygamy reinforces labour in the fields and increases the number of children who could take care of the parents in old age. Instead of employing workers, men would marry several women with whom they would produce a multitude of children as a built-in workforce. In this regard, polygamy enhances productivity. The larger a family the larger the portion of land they cultivate. It makes hunting more efficient, cattle rearing better organized and food production enhanced.
Polygamy is sometime a deliberate decision made by women. In this regard, it is often argued that if a woman thinks that she would be better off as a second or third wife rather than not married at all, why should the arrangement be prohibited? A polygamous contract between a man and a woman which makes both of the contracting better off should not be prohibited, denounced or criticised, especially if it causes no prejudice to the society. It is reported that African women, sometimes, offer themselves into a marriage with a married man because they find it harder to remain single and endure the reproach, contempt, misconception and stigma of the family and the community. Polygamous marriage allows these women to gain respect and consideration in a society which strongly disapproves, condemns and rejects female celibacy.
In some communities, especially in rural areas, a man's wealth is measured by the number of his wives as well as the number of his children. In such a context, it is prestigious to have many wives. Pride is associated with a larger family and shame is associated with small family which is a sign of poverty.
Women and children are safer in larger households where they are protected from the enemy.
In spite of all the reasons that can be used in support of polygamy it is clear that nowadays this practice should not be encouraged, especially because of the threat it represents for the enjoyment of women's rights. The negative aspects of polygamy are many. For example:
Polygamy often results in families with more children than they can reasonably support. In polygamous households, the father is likely to invest less time in the upbringing of his children because they are many of them. The reciprocal affection between husband and wife is likely to be less in polygamous households in comparison to monogamous households.
More importantly, polygamy-related abuses on women violate their fundamental rights including security, freedom from torture and degrading treatment, freedom from discrimination and free consent to marriage.
Some of the women and girls who have run away from polygamous households report that they were taught to submit to the authority of their husbands in any circumstances and they were frequently subjected to injustice, humiliation violence, coercion and abuse.
Women and girls in polygamous context are denied education and access to information from the outside world.
In many cases, polygamy turns to be the exploitation of women. It is often to the benefit of male sexual needs and social prestige. It totally disregards what is important to women or whether wives are happy or not.
To conclude, the following is the story of a young woman who experienced polygamous household environment during her childhood. Her name and other details have been removed from the testimony for confidentiality reasons:
"I come from a polygamous family. I can definitely tell you that my experience has not been good. My father had five wives. It was always war among the co-spouses and it was also war among us the children, including the young ones who did not understand what was going on. There was always the suspicion that one wife was going to hurt the children of another wife. Even those of us who wanted to be friends could not. After my father died, the hell started and it is still going on.
While I understand that polygamy was useful to our ancestors in the old days, the sort of society we have created today does not really allow it.
There is mass poverty. Today many of us are concerned with having enough to eat.
Moreover, polygamy can cause a lot of unnecessary pain to families. No matter how well parents manage the family, endless quarrels, rivalries and jealousies will always draw people apart."
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