African Journals Online
The African Anthropologist

JOURNAL OF THE PAN AFRICAN ANTHROPOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION

Number 1 Volume VIII March 2001
Abstracts

I.V.O. Modo The Changing Family Structure and Legal Lag in Lesotho: 
Implications for the Future 

Abstract
Universally, the family is seen as the building block of the society. In
Lesotho family law, proclamation 74 of 1871 succinctly spelled out those
whom the society recognised as being married under the customary and
Christian tradition. Over the years, the migration of able-bodied Lesotho
men, especially in the very last quarter of the Twentieth Century, affected
this marriage system and contributed in various ways to the prevalence of
women single-parents and co-habitation. Today, over 50% of Lesotho
households are headed by women; but women are still considered as minors.
This paper examines the Laws of Lesotho on women's rights and the status of
children qualified to inherit their parents' property. It observes that
many children born out of wedlock who constitute about 30% of the children's
population have no status of legitimacy and thus cannot inherit property.
The paper recommends that new family laws enacted in response to the
changing circumstances; laws that could match the permissive society, halt
abuse of women and children and instil sanity into the family structure.


C. Otutubikey Izugbara Tasting the Forbidden Fruit: The Social Context of Debut Sexual EncountersAmong Young Persons in a Rural Nigerian Community 

Abstract
One of the greatest challenges currently facing conventional adolescents'
sexual and reproductive health (ASRH) related research is how to make
connections beyond the domain of immediate and proximate factors in order to
root ASRH concerns more properly and correctly. Yet variable interconnections
made at such levels hold the key to breaking the walls that had hindered a
systematic understanding of ASRH issues. In response to this challenge, the
present study attempts to use the circumstances surrounding the debut sexual
encounters of young persons in a rural Nigerian Community as a central point
to understanding their vulnerability to sexual and reproductive health
problems. Data for the study were gathered using indepth interviews of 180
persons aged 11-25. Emerging evidence is that first sexual encounters took
place under conditions that exposed young people to infections, disability,
and even death. The study shows that there is need to build on the clear
evidence that good sex education for young persons delays the onset of
sexual activity and makes it safer when it eventually commences.