News / National
Zim starts issuing new marriage certificates
04 Apr 2012 at 06:57hrs | Views
THE Registrar-General's Office in Harare has started sending new marriage certificates to centres throughout the country amid fears that the documents will not meet the demand during the Easter holidays.
A majority of Zimbabweans take advantage of long holidays to hold marriage ceremonies.
The fear of the shortage stems from reports that Bulawayo and Matabeleland North provinces magistrates' courts had received only five registers with 50 marriage certificates each.
The two provinces have nine marriage centres, which are expected to share the five registers.
In a telephone interview yesterday, a provincial registrar based at the RG's Office in Harare, Mr Gorden Tsuro, said the office receives consignments of the new marriage certificates on a daily basis.
"We are getting consignments on a daily basis and we distribute them to various centres throughout the country. It is impossible to reach every corner at the same time but we hope that by early next week, the situation would have stabilised," said Mr Tsuro.
He said the certificates were manufactured locally and were being distributed to the magistrates' courts and church ministers.
Mr Tsuro said church ministers were given the new certificates if they satisfy all the requirements and bring a confirmation letter from the head of denomination.
Last Friday, scores of couples intending to tie the knot at the magistrates' courts in some parts of the country went home a disappointed lot after marriages were suspended indefinitely.
Although the provincial magistrate responsible for Bulawayo and Matabeleland North provinces, Mr John Masimba, could not comment and referred questions to the Judicial Services Commission, sources at the courts said efforts were already under way to contact those couples that were affected by last week's cancellations.
"Efforts are already under way to contact the couples that were affected by the cancellation last week and we hope to give them preference by allowing them to solemnise their marriages on Thursday this week. All that they would be expected to bring along are passport size photographs, which are now part of the new requirements," said a source speaking on condition of anonymity.
A total of 20 couples were supposed to tie the knot last Friday at the Bulawayo magistrates' courts while other couples were also turned away from the Western Commonage magistrates' courts.
The RG's Office on 28 March unveiled a new marriage certificate and measures to curb marriages of convenience.
The highly-securitised marriage certificate came into force with immediate effect.
The new requirements include that both the groom and the bride should post passport size photographs on the certificate banns and marriage licences.
Mass weddings are not allowed and are not provided for in the Marriages Act, Chapter 5:11 and this practice was mostly popular with churches.
The requirements state that marriage officers except magistrates, must have a passport size photograph on the Marriage Officer Practising Certificate.
"Applications for marriage licence, revenue receipt and Certificate of Banns together with the duplicate original must be submitted to the Registrar General's Office within 30 days of solemnisation," reads the memorandum from the RG, Mr Tobaiwa Mudede.
Another memorandum addressed to provincial magistrates and dated 2 April, states that magistrates by virtue of the office they hold as marriage officers also, are required to supply their personal details to the Registrar of Marriages in order for them to update their data base.
Every magistrate is required to complete a form and attach a passport size photograph and the deadline for submitting them to the Chief Magistrates' office is 14 April.
At the launch of the new certificate, Mr Mudede said no grace period would be given to the marriage officers to continue using the old marriage certificates.
He said the new document had security features, making counterfeiting impossible.
It also has space for full names and national identity numbers for witnesses and marriage officer's date stamp. There is also a space for the right thumb prints of the bride and the right for the groom and this requirement might prove a stumbling block as magistrates' courts do not have the facilities for such an exercise.
Mr Mudede said the Government is fighting the nuisance of marriages of convenience, adding that marriage officers would have to comply with this and, if they don't, jail would be waiting for them.
He said Zimbabwe was the first in the world to fight marriages of convenience and the securitised document could never be forged.
A majority of Zimbabweans take advantage of long holidays to hold marriage ceremonies.
The fear of the shortage stems from reports that Bulawayo and Matabeleland North provinces magistrates' courts had received only five registers with 50 marriage certificates each.
The two provinces have nine marriage centres, which are expected to share the five registers.
In a telephone interview yesterday, a provincial registrar based at the RG's Office in Harare, Mr Gorden Tsuro, said the office receives consignments of the new marriage certificates on a daily basis.
"We are getting consignments on a daily basis and we distribute them to various centres throughout the country. It is impossible to reach every corner at the same time but we hope that by early next week, the situation would have stabilised," said Mr Tsuro.
He said the certificates were manufactured locally and were being distributed to the magistrates' courts and church ministers.
Mr Tsuro said church ministers were given the new certificates if they satisfy all the requirements and bring a confirmation letter from the head of denomination.
Last Friday, scores of couples intending to tie the knot at the magistrates' courts in some parts of the country went home a disappointed lot after marriages were suspended indefinitely.
Although the provincial magistrate responsible for Bulawayo and Matabeleland North provinces, Mr John Masimba, could not comment and referred questions to the Judicial Services Commission, sources at the courts said efforts were already under way to contact those couples that were affected by last week's cancellations.
"Efforts are already under way to contact the couples that were affected by the cancellation last week and we hope to give them preference by allowing them to solemnise their marriages on Thursday this week. All that they would be expected to bring along are passport size photographs, which are now part of the new requirements," said a source speaking on condition of anonymity.
A total of 20 couples were supposed to tie the knot last Friday at the Bulawayo magistrates' courts while other couples were also turned away from the Western Commonage magistrates' courts.
The highly-securitised marriage certificate came into force with immediate effect.
The new requirements include that both the groom and the bride should post passport size photographs on the certificate banns and marriage licences.
Mass weddings are not allowed and are not provided for in the Marriages Act, Chapter 5:11 and this practice was mostly popular with churches.
The requirements state that marriage officers except magistrates, must have a passport size photograph on the Marriage Officer Practising Certificate.
"Applications for marriage licence, revenue receipt and Certificate of Banns together with the duplicate original must be submitted to the Registrar General's Office within 30 days of solemnisation," reads the memorandum from the RG, Mr Tobaiwa Mudede.
Another memorandum addressed to provincial magistrates and dated 2 April, states that magistrates by virtue of the office they hold as marriage officers also, are required to supply their personal details to the Registrar of Marriages in order for them to update their data base.
Every magistrate is required to complete a form and attach a passport size photograph and the deadline for submitting them to the Chief Magistrates' office is 14 April.
At the launch of the new certificate, Mr Mudede said no grace period would be given to the marriage officers to continue using the old marriage certificates.
He said the new document had security features, making counterfeiting impossible.
It also has space for full names and national identity numbers for witnesses and marriage officer's date stamp. There is also a space for the right thumb prints of the bride and the right for the groom and this requirement might prove a stumbling block as magistrates' courts do not have the facilities for such an exercise.
Mr Mudede said the Government is fighting the nuisance of marriages of convenience, adding that marriage officers would have to comply with this and, if they don't, jail would be waiting for them.
He said Zimbabwe was the first in the world to fight marriages of convenience and the securitised document could never be forged.
Source - TC
