Zimbabwe is presently experiencing major political and economic setbacks due to the Mugabe-government's desparate cling to power. Rural poverty is increasing drastically, seriously influencing women's situation and their capacity to demand their rights. Violence against women, especially wife beating, is common. Domestic violence accounted for more than 60 percent of murder cases tried in the Harare High Court in 1998. The media increasingly reports incidents of rape, incest, and sexual abuse of women.
Women remain disadvantaged in society.
Illiteracy, economic dependency, and prevailing social norms subject women to societal discrimination. Culture and religion generally accept and promote polygyny and the marriage of girls at young ages. There were increasing reports of ritual murders associated with traditional religious practices. The President and his Government exacerbated widespread resentment of the economically prominent European ethnic minority. Since independence the Government has enacted major laws aimed at enhancing women's rights and countering certain traditional practices that discriminate against women.