Polygamy - Good Economic Sense? Part I

Zuma with one of his wives

President Zuma dancing at one of his weddings

In many African countries, polygamy is legally practiced, accepted and embraced. A number of heads of state openly practice polygamy. 

President Zuma with his wives

For instance, President Jacob Zuma of South Africa (aka JZ) has been married five times and has 20 children. President Zuma considers himself a traditionalist and makes no apologies for practicing polygamy.

Reed Dance

King Mswati III of Swaziland, one of the last remaining absolute monarchs in the world has 14 wives and 23 children. This 43 year old monarch has been known to select his wives from the Reed Dances which primarily have nothing to do with him. The Reed Dance is a traditional ceremony for Swazi maidens to pay tribute to the Queen Mother by bringing tall reeds used to build windbreaks around the Queen Mother's residence. Although King Mswati III gets a lot of flack for his many wives, he does not hold a flame to his father King Sobhuza II who had 70 wives, 210 children and at the time of his death in 1982, over 1000 grand children.

Queen Nothando Dube

An embarrassing scandal broke out in last year when the 22 year old Queen Nothando Dube, considered one of the most beautiful of Mswati's wives, was caught having an affair with the Minister of Justice. She is now under 24-hour surveillance for the rest of her life.

Masai women

In Eastern Africa polygamy is also embraced and seems also to be growing not only among the Masai, who still maintain every aspect of their traditional culture but even among the so called elite. The Kenyan President, Kibaki, denied having two wives which angered many Kenyans and particularly the Gikuyu elders who know the second wife and were present at the traditional wedding ceremony. Kibaki was looking to please his Western counterparts who would not conceive of an LSE Alumni practicing polygamy.

Arguments for Polygamy:
There are various arguments given for this form of marital practice. They range from trying to accommodate a gender imbalance, where there are more females than males due to natural and un-natural causes, to economic benefits for the women. One recent argument that is being used as a justification by Christian religious leaders is that some of God's finest men (e.g. Moses, David, Solomon) were polygamists. These "men of God" are their role models!

In Southern Africa elders also use polygamy to warn young men that they could lose out on love if they do not behave. "In order to win a girl, you must be a good boy," said one elder. "Responsible young men become responsible husbands".

I do not see how this is an argument for polygamy, but there you have it.

The gender imbalance has been refuted as holding no water and is considered archaic.

Next segment we look at the economic argument. For the most part is makes some sense. Look out for the next posting.


Resources:
Vote Polygamy

Wife No 12 Caught in bed...

Bare-Breasted Virgins...

HuffPost