Sylvester Mwendwa said he would pay the bride
price
Two Kenyan men have signed an
agreement to "marry" the same woman.
The woman had been having affairs with both men for more than four years and
apparently refused to choose between them.
The agreement sets out a rota for Sylvester Mwendwa and Elijah Kimani to stay
in her house and states they will both help raise any children she bears.
Mr Mwendwa told the BBC he loved the woman and said the contract would "set
boundaries" and "keep the peace".
Lawyers said the "marriage" would only be recognised if
they could prove polyandry - a woman having more than one husband - was part of
their custom.
The BBC's David Okwembah in the capital, Nairobi, says polyandry is not
practised by any community in Kenya.
People have reacted with shock to the "marriage", arguing that it is not
acceptable in terms of their culture, religion or the law, he says.
Defending the "marriage", Mr Mwendwa told the BBC Focus on Africa programme
that while he may acting in breach of the law, he had decided to enter into a
contract with Mr Kimani to end their rivalry.
"It could have been very dangerous if the other man would have come to her
house and caught me... So our agreement is good as it sets boundaries and helps
us keep peace."
'No jealousy'
Community policing officer Adhalah Abdulrahman persuaded the two men to marry
the woman after he saw them fighting over her in Mombasa county, the local Daily
Nation newspaper reports.
"We have agreed that from today we will not threaten or have jealous feelings
because of our wife, who says she's not ready to let go of any of us," the
agreement says, Kenya's NTV station reports.
"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," it adds.
Mr Mwendwa said her parents had given their blessing, while he is planning to
pay the bride price.
The woman, a widow with two children, did not want to be named.
Mr Mwendwa told the BBC he did not marry the woman simply to satisfy his
sexual desires but because he loved her and, most of all, her children.
"I have never been called a dad and her two children call me daddy," he
said.
He said he hoped to have his own children with the woman, but she would have
to decide.
"She is like the central referee. She can say whether she wants me or my
colleague," he added.
Kenyan family lawyer Judy Thongori told the Daily Nation that the law does
not explicitly forbid polyandry.
"The laws we have do not talk about it but for such a union to be recognised
in Kenya, it has to be either under the statutory law or as customary marriage.
The question we should ask now is whether these people come from communities
that have been practising polyandry," she is quoted as saying.
#bbc
