PARIS (Reuters) - New polygamous marriages and sharia courts will be banned on France's Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte when it becomes a department of the French state next year, according to a draft ordinance presented on Wednesday.
Mayotte, an island territory between Mozambique and Madagascar, will also end repudiation, the traditional Muslim divorce, and raise the minimum marriage age for females from 16 to 18, according to a statement by the cabinet.
"The ordinance puts a definitive end to inequality between men and women," Overseas Territories Minister Marie-Luce Penchard said. "There will no longer be a possibility to enter into polygamous unions as used to be the case".
Existing polygamous marriages can continue, she added.
