‘Polygamy is illegal in Eritrea’ – Eritreans react to story that men must marry 2 wives

A fake story originally posted by a Somali website which stated that an unnamed “activist” posted a memo on a social media site allegedly from the Eritrean government asking men to marry at least two wives due to shortage of men caused by war, has gone viral.

According to the report, the document, which was written in Arabic, says the State of Eritrea called for all men in the country to marry at least two wives and the government assuring that it will pay for the marriage ceremonies and houses. It added any man or woman who oppose the decision “will face a life sentence”.

Since the report, Eritrea has been trending in many African countries, including Nigeria, Kenya and Ghana.

Many men from Kenya and Nigeria have said they will move to Eritrea to get their share of wives.

Many Eritreans have pointed out that the hoax report goes against the recently instituted Penal Code of Eritrea, which practically makes polygamy illegal in the country: