Kitambo was introduced by Kirabo to her family in a customary marriage ceremony and everything went well. When they had their first child, Kirabo started noticing that Kitambo was a bit ‘weird’. He would go out naked at night and sometimes neighbours would tell her that they saw her husband dancing in the middle of the road while reciting some strange words. When Kirabo confronted him, Kitambo informed her that he had decided to ‘go back to his roots’ and her son would soon join him. Kirabo decided at that moment that enough is enough and fled. She wants to divorce Kitambo now.
WHAT DOES THE LAW SAY?
Since marriage in Uganda can be religious, civil or customary, the law allows for different reasons for a couple to get divorced. If the couple want to divorce in a customary marriage, they can follow their traditional norms during the divorce or go to a court of law. If it is through their customary practices, Witchcraft can be used as a basis for divorce. A husband or wife can divorce the other spouse if they successfully prove that the other spouse was, during the time of their marriage, engaged in Witchcraft. However, once they go to court, there are 4 major grounds for divorce such as adultery, cruelty, change of religion and desertion for 2 years.
These days the court also accepts that the marriage has irretrievably broken down because of some of these things. When a person has been practicing witchcraft, in court this can be taken as proof of cruelty towards a spouse.
If one spouse can prove that the other was engaged in these acts, then the court can rule that this person was being cruel towards the other and allow the divorce. This can be proved by showing the ‘tools’ such as the shells, herbs, jembe (horns), even pictures of the person practicing their ‘art’ or witnesses who saw the person practicing the act of witchcraft. In Kitambo’s case, it can be the neighbours who saw him dancing and bathing herbs in the middle of the road at dawn.
#BarefootLaw
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