Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

WORLD NEWS

Mozambique Bans Johane Marange Apostolic Sect Over Child Marriage

The government of Mozambique has banned the Johane Marange Apostolic Sect for allegedly encouraging child marriage and disregarding health issues.

The controversial religious sect, which has its origins in the neighbouring country of Zimbabwe, is one of the “doubtful” churches which Mozambique banned.

According to the online publication Club of Mozambique, the Mozambican Ministry of Justice banned the Johane Maraange religious sect in the Central Province of Manica for allegedly promoting child marriage and disrespecting health issues.

Albachir Macassar, the National Director of Justice, Constitutional and Religious Affairs, told Radio Mozambique that the Ministry had also banned some religious institutions with “obscure purposes” in the southern Province of Inhambane.

During the interview with Radio Mozambique, the director of Justice said,
“To discipline some behaviour and excesses of certain religious denominations, a draft Law on Religious Freedom and Worship is under discussion to regulate the exercise of this activity in Mozambique.”

Macassar also insisted that the government of Mozambique is not interfering with religious worship. He emphasised that the government only seeks to direct and discipline religious organisations.

Speaking on the draft law, he said,

“The new law will provide for the registration of a religious denomination with a minimum of 2,000 faithful, in contrast to the current law, which recognises any religious body with a minimum of 500 faithful.”

According to Macassar, those who want to establish new churches must have a certificate in theology. If they are leaving an existing congregation, they must have a letter of disaffiliation or recommendation.

In Zimbabwe, the Johane Marange apostolic sect has made headlines for all the wrong reasons on numerous occasions over the issue of child marriage.

This has resulted in the church crossing swords with the authorities and child and women empowerment organisations such as the Girl Child Network and Rozaria Memorial Trust.

Many have urged the Zimbabwean government to act firmly against the apostolic sect due to its alleged lax stance on child marriage.

In other news…

Mnangagwa Blesses CIO directors with windfall of US$350 000

 

In a desperate attempt to placate key players in the electoral matrix ahead of the vital general elections later this year, President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s financially precarious administration has handed senior Central Intelligence Organization (CIO) directors US$350 000 house loans each.

Mnangagwa Blesses CIO directors with windfall of US$350 000

In order to uphold the status quo and protect the incumbent, general elections in Zimbabwe are frequently conducted by security forces in contravention of the law and…continue reading

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Trending

Zimbabwe Politics

Harare | Nine Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) accredited ambassadors in Zimbabwe have congratulated President Emmerson Mnangagwa for holding peaceful, free, fair, and credible...

Sports News

Oscar Pistorius Set to Test Freedom After 7 Years In Prison On Valentine’s Day in 2013, he shot Ms. Steenkamp several times through a...

LOCAL NEWS

Sad Ending to the Troubled Man Who Killed His Girlfriend! A 26-year-old male passed away on Wednesday night at Victoria Chitepo Provincial Hospital in...

Entertainment News

Harare | One of the main attractions of the massive Festive Season Festival, which takes place at Mtangaz Hideout in Ruwa on December 2,...

LOCAL NEWS

Many people are in shock over a photo of a hospital’s HIV testing completed in a single day after learning that every test performed...

Sports News

The trial of Mighty Warriors head coach Shadreck Mlauzi, charged with two counts of indecent assault, continued before Harare magistrate Ethel Chichera on Thursday....

LOCAL NEWS

Chitungwiza Thigh Vendor Robbed in a Foiled One-Night Stand! Harare | A Chitungwiza thigh vendor was robbed by a man she had intended to...

LOCAL NEWS

Harare | A Highfield man who died on Monday last week after being stabbed three times with a kitchen knife over US$2 was buried...