Abdo Khal

Okaz newspaper



If we were told that there was a giant ghoul attacking people at their very homes, we would all band together to hunt it down. I would like to assure you here that this ghoul is very much alive in our midst. It has attacked almost every single house in our country. Though we have heard about it, we are turning a deaf ear as if we are not concerned. Let us insert a full stop and begin the story right from the beginning.



Divorce has become a major issue in our country. It has risen to alarming levels. According to studies, there was a divorce case every 30 minutes in the Kingdom last year. What is the parameter for measuring this high divorce rate? The reports also said about 35 percent of the marriages had ended in divorce. This is way above the international standard which is between 18-22 percent. In 2010, there were 18,765 divorces against 90,983 marriages that year.



A study, conducted by the research unit of a university studies center, said the rate of divorce in the Kingdom had gone up from 25 percent to more than 60 percent during the past 20 years.



The family development center of Al-Bir Charity Organization in Al-Ahsa region, Eastern Province, said the ratio of divorce was 60 percent in Jeddah, 39 percent in Riyadh, 18 percent in the Eastern Province and 20 percent in Al-Ahsa. We should bear in mind that the research does not cover all cases.



Divorce is the ghoul destroying families and disintegrating the society. What have we done to face this real danger which is threatening our society? Is it enough just to give figures of divorce cases without coming up with new initiatives to curb it and stop this “ghoul” from roaming freely in our cities and villages to destroy our society and break up our families?



If we are unable to come with creative ideas, at least we can benefit from the experiences of other countries to protect their families from disintegration. Malaysia, for example, has initiated a program to mitigate the high rates of divorce by organizing a three -month training course in family management to prospective husbands and wives. All those planning to marry must join this training course and complete it with successful grades.



We should copy this idea. We can persuade people to enroll in these training courses by giving them financial incentives and job promotions. If we are really intent on protecting our society from disintegration and our families from breaking up, we should give the issue of divorce our highest priority. We should also look for other means to cut down the high rates of divorce.