Two men and a woman in Kenya have announced their intention to get married.
The arrangement comes after the woman – who has been in a relationship with both men for over four years – apparently refused to choose a husband between them.
Both men, named as Sylvester Mwendwa and Elijah Kimani, have signed a deal that lays down rules for them to live in her home, and requires them to provide for any children she may have. It is believed that their planned nuptials would be legitimate if they provide evidence that polyandry is part of their native practise, according to local paper The Daily Nation. Polygamy is legal in Kenya.
“The question we should ask now is whether these people come from communities that have been practising polyandry,” said family lawyer Judy Thongori.
The Daily Nation added that the agreement was drafted following Mwendwa and Kimani’s discovery that they had both been sleeping with the same woman in Mombasa County for over four years.
The revelation resulted in threats and even street altercations between the two men. It was after one such incident that a community policing officer, Adhalah Abdulrah-man, encouraged Mwendwa and Kimani to both marry the woman.
Kenya’s NTV station reports the agreement requires both men not to “threaten or have jealous feelings because of our wife, who says she’s not ready to let go of any of us.”
It continues: “Each one will respect the day set aside for him. We agree to love each other and live peacefully. No one has forced us to make this agreement. ”
Although the woman, a widow with two children, has not been named, Mwenda told the media that her parents had given their blessing for the marriage to go ahead.
