Advocate Thabani Mpofu, a well-known lawyer in Zimbabwe, is considering challenging a law that prevents prisoners from having sexual relations with their spouses.
In 2019, during “Family Week,” Mayor Kanyezi, the chief correctional officer of Zimbabwe Prison Correctional Services (ZPCS), stated that although some visitation rules were relaxed, conjugal rights were not allowed. He explained that when someone is convicted, they lose certain rights, including the right to s*xual relations with their partners.
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Mpofu believes that denying conjugal rights harms family connections, which are important for rehabilitating offenders. He recently shared on X that these rights are fundamental for maintaining intimate relationships and helping with rehabilitation.
He argues that the state has a duty to protect these rights for the innocent spouses of incarcerated individuals. Mpofu questioned how effective rehabilitation can be if essential family bonds are broken and why innocent spouses should suffer by being denied intimacy while expected to remain faithful.
He insists that conjugal rights are crucial for both personal relationships and rehabilitation, and the state should uphold these rights for the sake of those affected.
