The Changing Family Structure and Legal Lag in Lesotho: Implications for the Future

Universally, the family is seen as the building block of the society. In Lesotho family law, proclamation 74 of 1871 succinctly spelled out those whom the society recognised as being married under the customary and Christian tradition. Over the years, the migration of able-bodied Lesotho men, especially in the very last quarter of the Twentieth Century, affected this marriage system and contributed in various ways to the prevalence of women single-parents and co-habitation. Today, over 50% of Lesotho households are headed by women; but women are still considered as minors. This paper examines the Laws of Lesotho on women's rights and the status of children qualified to inherit their parents' property. It observes that many children born out of wedlock who constitute about 30% of the children's population have no status of legitimacy and thus cannot inherit property. The paper recommends that new family laws enacted in response to the changing circumstances; laws that could match the permissive society, halt abuse of women and children and instil sanity into the family structure. JOURNAL OF THE PAN AFRICAN ANTHROPOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION Number 1 Volume VIII March 2001, pp. 69-84