Zimbabwe: Thousands of Married Couples in Zimbabwe are facing a startling revelation as their marriage certificates issued within the past 18 months are invalid due to a clerical error.
Reportedly, the issue occurred when the Zimbabwe Law Society alerted lawyers nationwide about outdated stationery referencing to an old marriage act replaced in the year 2022.
The new act has been effective since September 2022 and has introduced significant reforms that include the enhanced rights for partners in traditional marriages and the criminalization of child marriage.
In a segment, the law society advises affected couples to have their certificates corrected by a registrar and has warned the invalid certificates that could impede divorce proceedings.
Some couples might find humour in the situation, and others are understandably concerned about it.
As per the sources, President Emmerson Mnangagwa has passed the law of new marriage law on May 27, 2022, under the Marriages Act, that has brought radical changes to the marriage laws in Zimbabwe, with the Marriage Act and Customary Marriages Act being repealed.
Considerably, the act introduced a civil partnership and a qualified civil marriage and recognised an unregistered customary law union as a marriage. The law also states that marriages are entered into only between men and women above 18 years, making it a criminal offence to facilitate the marriage of persons under eighteen years.
The Law Society of Zimbabwe (LSZ) has urged couples to check their marriage certificates after worrying about discrepancies. It was identified that certificates have been issued referencing an invalid Act.
The law itself has been updated with the physical marriage certificates and has not meant that couples are unknowingly holding onto documents that incorrectly cite chapter 5:11 of the act.
A public notice was launched by the LSZ executive secretary – Edward Mapara and said, “It has come to our attention that marriage certificates are currently being issued by the Registrar-General’s Office containing an error.”
Mapara said, “We advise that lawyers and individuals rectify this error by taking the incorrect certificates to Mr Mpala at the Registrar-General’s Office for amendment.
Furthermore, the members have been instructed in divorce proceedings and should ensure the marriage certificates are corrected as a divorce and cannot be founded on a defective certificate. The public notice was confirmed by LSZ spokesperson Richard Chidza.