The Maputo Protocol: Abolitionist or tolerative approach to polygamy, in the light of Ethiopia’s reservation?
Posted: 21 August, 2023 Filed under: Meron Eshetu Birhanu | Tags: Article 650, Criminal Code, cultural norms, Ethiopia, human rights, imprisonment, lack of legal protection, Maputo Protocol, Maputo Protocol Ratification Proclamation, monogamy, polygamous marriage, polygamy, polygamy belt, religious laws, religious norms, Revised Family Code, social norms, traditional practices, women’s rights 1 Comment
Author: Meron Eshetu Birhanu
Technical Assistant, African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR)
Despite growing modernity and advocacy for women’s rights, polygamy remains a common practice embraced by social, cultural, and religious norms[1] in most parts of Africa, including Ethiopia. The highest proportion of polygamy in Africa is found in the so-called ‘polygamy belt’, which spans from Senegal in West Africa to Tanzania in East Africa.[2] According to the 2016 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey, 11 percent of married women in Ethiopia are in polygamous relationships, of which 9 percent have one co-wife and 2 percent have two or more co-wives.[3]
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