The Harare civil court recently rendered a decision requiring a married man’s girlfriend Sheba Uta to pay his wife US$8,000 in restitution for her part in the couple’s breakup.
The ruling resulted from a case that Rosemary Chinhoi filed against Sheba Uta, who had an adulterous affair with Rosemary’s husband of thirty years, James Chinhoi.
Rosemary requested US$30,000 in damages, citing a number of concerns related to the affair, such as loss of consortium, contumelia, health problems brought on by stress, and Uta’s—a relative—breach of a vow to terminate the relationship.
The claim was reviewed by Harare magistrate Ms. Tamara Chibindi after a comprehensive civil trial, with a settlement of $8,000 for both contumelia and loss of consortium.
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Ms. Chibindi stressed the importance of adultery damages claims in civil cases, stating that these claims are necessary to preserve the social values of Zimbabwe that are contained in the Constitution. She cautioned against trivialising the amount of damages and emphasised how crucial it is to uphold the integrity of the legal system and discourage adulterous behaviour.
The decision upheld Chinhoi’s suffering, which included insult, indignity, and hurt, and also supported the contumelia damages award. The court noted Uta’s dishonesty and misuse of judicial resources, dismissing her defence as frivolous and disingenuous.
The ruling sought to preserve the institution’s integrity by highlighting Zimbabwe’s marriage’s constitutional protections and cultural value. Although the court acknowledged that attitudes towards marital infidelity were changing, it emphasised the significance of holding people accountable for their deeds, especially when those deeds cause a marriage to fail.
Even though they are uncommon, these cases serve as a reminder of Zimbabwean law and tradition’s unwavering dedication to protecting marital integrity and supporting social values.”
