Jody Sarich
Forced marriage, slavery, and plural legal systems: An African example
Sarich, Jody; Olivier, Michele; Bales, Kevin
Authors
Michele Olivier
Kevin Bales
Abstract
Slavery, long abolished under international law, left a devastating imprint on Africa. However, enslavement of women through forced marriages remains a common phenomenon in many African states. These African states share the common feature of legal pluralism where traditional legal systems continue to be observed alongside national laws in which slavery is outlawed. Where traditional practices condone the marriage of underage girls who are legally unable to consent, the questioning of age-old accepted forms of marriage can generate strong reactions. This article traces the position of forced and child marriages in international law, and investigates how legality becomes a moveable target when legal systems exist in parallel. Despite international and African Union conventions on slavery and human rights declaring that marriages not based on the full and free consent of both parties are considered a violation of human rights and a form of slavery, these practices persist. These instruments are assessed to gauge the level of conformity (or variance) of African state practice where forced marriages commonly occur. Importantly, the reasons behind noncompliance and the impact of legal pluralism are explored in African states where forced marriages commonly occur.
Citation
Sarich, J., Olivier, M., & Bales, K. (2016). Forced marriage, slavery, and plural legal systems: An African example. Human rights quarterly, 38(2), 450-476. https://doi.org/10.1353/hrq.2016.0030
Journal Article Type | Article |
---|---|
Acceptance Date | Feb 1, 2016 |
Publication Date | 2016-05 |
Deposit Date | Feb 29, 2016 |
Publicly Available Date | Mar 29, 2024 |
Journal | Human rights quarterly |
Print ISSN | 0275-0392 |
Electronic ISSN | 1085-794X |
Publisher | Johns Hopkins University Press |
Peer Reviewed | Peer Reviewed |
Volume | 38 |
Issue | 2 |
Pages | 450-476 |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1353/hrq.2016.0030 |
Keywords | Forced marriage |
Public URL | https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/411739 |
Publisher URL | http://muse.jhu.edu/article/617748 |
Additional Information | Authors' accepted manuscript of article published in: Human rights quarterly, 2016, v.38, issue 2 |
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Copyright Statement
Copyright © 2016 The Johns Hopkins University Press. This article first appeared in Human rights quarterly, Volume 38, Issue 2, May, 2016, pages 450-476
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