Saturday 20 / April / 2024
Muscat: Divorces in Oman dropped slightly in 2015, compared with 2014.
However, a shocking 91 per cent of these divorces took place between Omani couples.
Data issued by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI) showed that 91 per cent of the total divorces in the Sultanate took place between Omani men and women, with the remaining percentages distributed between expatriate couples, Omani men who are married to expatriates, and GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) women and vice versa.
Speaking to the Times of Oman, Her Highness Sayyida Basma Al Said, a psychiatrist and founder of the Whispers Serenity Clinic, explained that women and men in this generation differ from those belonging to the earlier generation.
“It’s the new generation; I’m not saying that the new generation is ‘crazy,’ it’s because a lot of the women have their own jobs and identity, as well as being highly educated. It’s sometimes not a good thing because if they get angry they can say ‘that’s it, I’m leaving.’”
“Nobody has tolerance. Communication is the key. It also depends on how the person is brought up; when you get married you have to sacrifice. People don’t sacrifice (these days) in marriage—they think this is me and I won’t change and if you don’t (like it), I’ll go. The guy would say ‘fine, I’ll marry someone else,’” she added.
According to NCSI, Omani couples accounted for 3,344 divorces in 2015 out of a total of 3,619. There was only a 0.1 per cent decrease in divorces in 2015, compared with 2014, where 3,622 divorces were recorded.
The Musandam Governorate also recorded a 57 per cent increase in divorce rates, registering 36 in 2015, compared with 23 in 2014, followed by the Buraimi Governorate reporting a 25 per cent increase at 178 divorces, compared with 142 in 2014. Divorces in the Muscat Governorate were pegged at 897 in 2015, up from 780 in 2014, which indicated a 15 per cent jump.
On the brighter side, the North Al Sharqiyah Governorate registered a 24 per cent drop in divorces to 219 in 2015, down from 287 in 2014, followed by the Al Wusta Governorate with 61 in 2015, and 72 in the previous year, which showed a 15 per cent decrease, while South Al Sharqiyah’s divorces recorded a 10 per cent dip from 247 in 2014 to 347 in 2015.
Communication is key
“Communication is key—if there is communication in the relationship, everything will work out. Communication, tolerance, and more important than love and everything else, is respect,” advised Al Said on how to have a health, long lasting relationship.
A national, who asked to remain anonymous, shared his thoughts on the news saying, “I believe that people nowadays don’t take marriage seriously. I’ve heard girls in their 20’s say they just want to get married, they don’t care to whom.”
“They sometimes don’t understand that marriage is hard work and sacrifice. I’ve never heard a man say he wants to get married out of the blue, because I guess he understands what marriage entails. If there isn’t mutual support, respect and sacrifice, the marriage will fall apart,” he added.
