'Legalise Muslim polygamy' plea

The Cape High Court has been asked to recognise polygamous Muslim marriages for purposes of the duty of support between spouses, said the Womens' Legal Centre (WLC) on Tuesday.

A polygamous marriage is one where the husband has more than one wife.

The applicant, Gabie Hassam, had asked the court to order the executor of her late husband's estate to recognise her marriage under Muslim law.

The executor had refused to allow her claim on the estate because she was her husband's second wife.

These marriages, the WLC said, had historically enjoyed no legal recognition, and consequently many women and children had lost out on the right to maintenance and to inherit in the absence of a will.

The Constitutional Court recently extended the right to inherit to spouses in monogamous Muslim marriages, and the WLC said it wanted that right extended.