Page:Fourie v Minister of Home Affairs (HC).djvu/4

 The “right” in question must be the Applicants' assumption that they are married. Again I refer to prayer 2 of the notice of motion. In Roman Law marriage is the full legal union of man and woman for the purpose of lifelong mutual companionship. I refer for example to Sohm: Institutes and Roman Law 3rd Edition at page 452. Nothing I am aware of has changed since. Indeed the Marriage Act 25 of 1961 mirrors the age old concept of what a marriage is. I refer to the peremptory provisions of section 30(1) of the Act: This section which, as I have already pointed out, is peremptory. It contemplates a marriage between a male and a female and no other. Section 11(1) of the same act provides as follows: