The 2020 and 2024 constitution drafts both affirm the right to marry and found a family, but the 2024 draft introduces a significant change by restricting legal recognition of marriage exclusively to unions between a man and a woman. This fact sheet outlines the added provision and its implications.
2020 Constitution Draft (Section 54)
Provision:
A man and a woman of full age and capacity have the right to marry and found a family.
Key Requirement: Marriage must be based on the free and full consent of both the man and the woman.
2024 Constitution Draft (Section 46)
Provision:
Subsection (1): Repeats the 2020 draft language:
A man and a woman of full age and capacity have the right to marry and found a family, and such marriage shall be based on the free and full consent of the man and the woman.
New Addition:
Subsection (2) introduces a new stipulation:
Marriage shall be recognized solely as a union between a man and woman, and no other union shall be legally recognized or construed as equivalent to marriage.
Key Changes in the 2024 Draft
- Recognition of Marriage:
The 2020 draft does not explicitly define the nature of marriage beyond consenting adults of full age and capacity.
The 2024 draft adds a restriction specifying that only unions between a man and a woman are legally recognized as marriages. - Exclusion of Other Unions:
The 2024 draft explicitly states that no other union outside a man-woman marriage will be considered or construed as equivalent to marriage. This could exclude other types of unions, such as same-sex partnerships or civil unions, from any form of legal recognition under this constitutional provision.
Conclusion
The 2024 draft upholds the original rights to marry and found a family with consent. However, clearly defines marriage as a man-woman union and precludes legal recognition for any other type of union. This is a significant shift in legal interpretation, reflecting a more restrictive approach to the definition of marriage.
By Yankuba corr and khadijah Sey Sawaneh
Researchers