Divorce alarm: Women ‘can help bring graph down’

RIYADH: Women can play a leading role in curbing divorce cases which are increasing at an alarming rate in the Kingdom, says a family consultant.
“The increasing divorce rate is a disaster as many women and families suffer from it,” said Zahra Al-Moabi.
Saudi Arabia has the dubious distinction of being among countries with the highest divorce rate. On average, one in five marriages ends up in divorce, 80 percent of them before the first wedding anniversary.
“Women can majorly control this phenomenon because they have authority at home. As mothers, they can teach the boys to treat women with respect,” said Al-Moabi.
She also stressed the need for educating women on how to handle the new life after marriage.
Al-Moabi said a campaign has been launched to make women aware of their potentiality and strength in order to be an effective member of the community. “This is being done as an effort to reduce the divorce rate.”
In 2014, out of a population of 21 million Saudis and nine million expats, 34,000 weddings were annulled in Saudi Arabia, three times more compared to the previous year, according to data released by the Justice Ministry.
Experts are increasingly worried about this phenomenon in Saudi society, and have been campaigning to educate both men and women, through various platforms, on the importance of marriage.