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October 30, 2006
Somalia: Islamists Ban All Marriages Except Arranged Partnerships
News from Pravda and Associated Press via the International Herald Tribune reports that the Islamists of Somalia have added a ban on marriages of choice to their list of other banned activities. They have so far banned films, watching soccer matches, and enforced strict following of five-times-a-day prayer in the regions under their control. They have also banned the chewing and trading of Khat (qat) a leafy stimulant popular in the Horn of Africa.
A fatwa against marriages which were not arranged with parental consent has been made on Monday (today). The edict was announced by Sheikh Mahad Mohamed Sheikh Hassan, in the Islamic court of Wanlawien. Hassan said that marriages not arranged formally by parents are against Islam.
The standard Islamic marriage in Somalia involves dowry. Many young couples practice the custom of "masaafo", where they run off and get wed without parents' consent. Parents can object on grounds of dowries being too small, or other reasons. It is said that a marriage in Somalia can cost as much as a year's average earnings.
Pravda and AP quote a 21-year old man, who said: "They cannot ban what our forefathers practiced. All of us, including the mullahs were born from elopement marriage."
Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at October 30, 2006 8:36 PM
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