JEDDAH, 15 July 2006 — Divorce cases in Jeddah rose at alarming rates to reach 33 cases a day last year, according to a report released by the Jeddah High Court.
The report showed a total of 12,192 divorces in the Hijri year 1426 (February 2005 to January 2006). It noted that the rise of divorce figures in Jeddah was by 60 percent, followed by 39 percent in Riyadh in the same period, 20 percent in Ahsa and 18 percent in the Eastern Province.
The report showed that 799 cases were women demanding unilateral divorce from their husbands while 354 involved custody disputes and 196 involved demanding visitation rights. Other cases included 578 demanding financial compensation and 141 complaints against the lack of dowry payment or reimbursement.
Aed Maqbool Al-Qarni of the Religious Affairs Department of the Ministry of Defense and Aviation said the increasing number of divorce cases in the Kingdom was largely due to ignoring religious instructions while choosing a spouse.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) has taught that considerations such as beauty, wealth and the social status of the spouse’s family should come only next to devotion and character, Al-Qarni said.
The religious scholar added that people often do not adhere to the religious rules, such as requiring the consent of the daughter if the family wants to arrange a marriage.
