Polygamous queer marriages could become a reality in South Africa In a bid to ensure true marriage equality, the government is proposing a new inclusive marriage law to better accommodate transgender South Africans and to allow for polygamous queer marriages. The Department of Home Affairs recently published its Cabinet-approved Green Paper on Marriages in South Africa.
The policy discussion paper offers options to standardise and consolidate the country’s haphazard marriage laws. Marriages are currently regulated through three laws: The Marriage Act (for monogamous marriage for opposite-sex couples), the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act (polygynous marriages for opposite-sex black South Africans) and the Civil Union Act (monogamous