LUCY PHIRI writes
@SunZambian
A WOMAN of Lusaka has lost her bid to ‘divorce’ her cruel husband because dowry was not paid and the two were living as boyfriend and girlfriend.
Eliness Mulanga,26 of Kasisi area told Chelstone Local Court presiding magistrate Mary Namangala that she wanted her marriage to Steven Sisikanga,34, of Ndeke East to end for turning her into a punching bag and not giving support to the family.
The court however threw out divorce application as there was no marriage between them since dowry was not paid.
Mulanga complained to the court that her husband beat her a lot and did not support his children.
She told court that they got married on the August 20 last year, and have two children. Dowry was not paid.
“Ever since we got married there has never been peace in our matrimonial home because whenever he gets drunk he beats me. Parents have tried to sit us down but to no avail,
“Whenever he gets paid he doesn’t give me money and also refuses to provide anything for home. My husband started coming home late. At one point he came home around 02:00hours and when I asked him where he had been he told me that he has found a new wife since I don’t want to give him more children,” she said.
She was scared he might kill her one day with his beatings which had become too much to bear as sometime she fainted from them.
In defence, Sisikanga said he supported his children, and the reason why he beat her was because she did not respect him as a husband.
“My wife doesn’t respect me and refuses to sleep with me saying she doesn’t want to bare more children no wonder I went to look for a girlfriend so she can give me more children,
“And ever since she started working she has been rude to me, I am just asking for forgiveness from her and I don’t want divorce,” Sisikanga said.
In submission, Mulanga insisted that all she wanted was relief from daily beatings and the only way out of that was divorce.
It told the two that they were living as boyfriend and girlfriend and advised Mulanga to sue for children maintenance
