Dowry practices in a state of flux

Some refugees say even though their culture only recognises cattle as a form of dowry payment, some people are starting to accept money as a bride price.



Ruon Machar Turoal, a South Sudanese living in Uganda’s Bweyale Refugee Settlement, says many lost boys, who fled to the United States during South Sudan’s protracted war with Sudan, have since returned from America to marry girls from this camp.



He says just last month his brother’s daughter who lives in the camp, married a man from the United States. The family wanted her dowry to be paid in the form of cattle, but they accepted money instead of cattle because they are in a foreign country.

“We just calculate how is the girl to be married, for how many cows,” he explains. One cow costs about 400 USD and a typical bride price varies from 70 to 80 cows, depending on ethnic origin and cultural norms. This works up to around 32,000 USD.



Turoal says although the Nuer culture does not recognise money as dowry, people living in refugee camps have come to realise they should adapt their traditions and accept money as dowry, after loosing their cows when fleeing their homes in South Sudan.


In some cases, he says, parents will accept that part of the dowry be paid in money while the rest will be paid in cattle in the near future, once the refugees return to South Sudan.



Turoal says although some communities still oppose the payment of cash for dowry, he believes it does not contradict their traditional norms.

In Nuer custom, when a girl is married, all the relatives expect to get a share of the cattle paid for the bride.

Turoal argues even when the dowry is paid in money, relatives can still get their share.

In some South Sudanese societies, parents choose husbands for their daughters. Turoal calls that an outdated practice, saying girls must be given the right to choose their partners.



Turoal believes the practice of paying cows as dowry will soon disappear as people adapt to a monetary economy, adding that in 10 to 15 years he expects monetary deals to dominate.

Members of the Nuer community in the camp have set up a customary court to resolve criminal cases and marriage disputes.



Gatloth Duol heads the traditional court in Bweyale Refuge Settlement. Speaking in Nuer, Duol says some young men in the camp impregnate girls out of wedlock instead of following the proper procedure to marry them. Such cases trigger conflict within the community.

He says his customary court is expected to punish and arrest youth who violate traditional marriage practices.

Gatloth says that he and other leaders of the court will still settle disputes on issues related to marriage and criminal activities.

“If the girl is impregnated, we charge the person that is responsible to pay five cows to the parents of the girl and this is (paid) in the form of money,” he explains.



He says if the boy loves the girl, they settle the case by bringing both parents to reach agreement based on local marriage procedures, adding that they only step in when there are real disputes.



Duol says despite living in a foreign country, South Sudanese communities including the Nuer still want to practice their marriage customs. “We enact law and order for everyone who may be in this camp,” he says, adding that people have to take responsibility and do the right thing.