It is important to note that the payment of a dowry or bride price does not mean that a woman ends up in a servile marriage. In this context, it is the non-consensual nature of the marriage that is the abuse, not the payment. In some countries, however, a bride price does in fact translate into men feeling that they own their wives.
Legal status
Non-negotiated soft law
Body
Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences