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Mozambique:”Union” of district commander with 16-year-old discarded by police as false allegations
3:59 CAT | 05 Jan 2021
The spokesman for the Police of the Republic of Mozambique (PRM) in Zambézia province, in the centre of the country, today declared the allegation of an alleged illegal “union” [marriage] involving a district police commander and a 16-year-old minor to be false.
“We set up a commission of inquiry that went to the district of Morrumbala and found that there is no evidence of an involvement of the district commander with this minor,” Sidner Lonzo told the media in Zambezia.
At stake is the denunciation a week ago by civil society organisations of the alleged ‘union’ [marriage] between the PRM commander in Morrumbala district ( Zambézia province) and a 16-year-old girl, at a ceremony which, according to the NGOs, was allegedly attended by “some senior officials of the state in that district”. [NGO’s and civil society bodies which include the Mozambican Bar Association, see the statement below].
The case was reported by a community child protection committee in the district in a letter submitted to the Attorney General’s Office, the provincial office for Assistance to Family and Minor Victims of Violence and the National Human Rights Commission, on December 9.
“Unfortunately, we [society in general] are not yet prepared for this context of a lot of false information,” the police spokesman added.
The Provincial Public Prosecutor’s Office of Zambézia on Thursday requested the temporary suspension of the district police commander, and also assigned a group to investigate the case.
Mozambique continues to record one of the highest prevalence rates of premature marriages in the world, with around 48% of girls getting married before reaching 18 years of age.
These ‘marriages’ or ‘unions’ are usually negotiated by the minors’ families, often as a strategy to escape poverty.
In October 2019, the Mozambican president, Filipe Nyusi, enacted and sent for publication the Law on Preventing and Combating Premature Unions, which was passed by parliament in July 2019.
The law bans marital unions involving people under the age of 18, punishing adults who marry a minor under 18 years of age, or become engaged to one, with up to two years in prison.
The penalty extends to adults who participate in the preparations for the ‘engagement’ and to any adult who agrees to live in a “union” arranged by other people, when they know that the partner is under 18 years old.
Sanctions are also foreseen for civil servants, religious leaders and traditional leaders who “celebrate marriages” involving minors under 18, in which case the civil servant may be sentenced to up to eight years in prison.
REPÚDIO E CONDENAÇÃO A UNIÃO PREMATURA PRATICADA PELO COMANDANTE DISTRITAL DA POLÍCIA DA REPÚBLICA DE MOÇAMBIQUE (PRM)…
Publicado por Ordem dos Advogados de Moçambique em Quarta-feira, 30 de dezembro de 2020
Source: Lusa
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