The divorce rate among the lower middle class and middle class has increased rapidly during the last few years damaging the social fabric of the country, Pakistan Today has learnt.
Some years ago, divorces were mostly related to only the upper class but now women from the lower middle class are filing cases for separation over minor issues which could be easily solved at home under guidance of
family elders.
Despite being considered a social dogma, women do not hesitate to file for divorce. The existing family laws also support the divorce-seeking women for whom getting divorce has now become as easy as buying a suit of their own choice.
According to a survey conducted by Pakistan Today, family courts in Lahore decide more than 1,000 cases per month related to dissolution of marriage in favour of women. As compared to developed countries, where the divorce rate has gone beyond 52 percent, in Pakistan it is still on the lower side but a swift increase in it is alarming for society.
During the survey, it was learnt that in 2011, 5,429 family cases have been filed so far in family courts of Lahore and out of them over 2,000 are purely related to dissolution of marriage. Lack of tolerance and compromise among couples is playing a vital role in increasing the divorce rate while financial problems are another big reason for separations normally in the lower middle class, where husbands fail to fulfil the demands of their
wives and ultimately it turns into a main reason of dispute.
Most of the women approach courts to get divorce on the basis of awareness about their rights, which has been given to them by the media and non-governmental organisations (NGO). It has been observed that most of the women come to file their cases along with their parents, which shows that parents support their daughters in getting divorce.
The divorce rate in Pakistan is not an indication of happier marriages. Most of the couples, particularly wives, might be quite unhappy even miserable but might not opt for divorce for a number of sociological reasons. There is, for example, the fact that a single woman has no financial even personal security. Then there is family pressure on the women to stay married.
The social stigma that comes with divorce, particularly for a woman, is another motive for the wife to stay in a marriage.
These are a host of other factors which prevent people, particularly women, from
seeking a divorce.
When you can’t just get along…
