Divorce cases among Bidayuhs on the rise — Temenggong

KUCHING: Infidelity and other issues such as getting married too soon and not having a stable income have been identified as the main causes for the rising number of divorce cases, said Bidayuh community leader Temenggong Austin Dimin.

He pointed out that as far as the Bidayuh community was concerned, the rate of divorce cases within the community was now on the uptrend but not alarming.

Without revealing the latest figures, he nonetheless urged the Bidayuh community not to be complacent because records from the Natives Court showed that divorce cases were heard very often.

"The reasons in most cases are mostly social and infidelity issues. My advice to parents is for them to advise their children on the roles and responsibilities of married couples to bring peace and happiness including food, money, shelter, love and care and education to their offspring.

“Parents must show good examples and inculcate moral and religious values in their children," he said.

Austin, who is the Temenggong for the Bidayuhs in Kuching Division, was commenting on a recent news report that divorce rates in the state were increasing at an alarming pace since 2010, with most marriages crumbling within five years and mostly involving young couples.

Welfare, Women and Family Development Minister Datuk Fatimah Abdullah was quoted as saying that from 2010 to 2013, statistics from Sarawak Islamic Affairs Department (Jais) and National Registration Department Sarawak showed there were 13,270 divorce cases in total.

Out of this, 8,215 were Muslim couples while 5,055 were nonMuslim couples. Muslim divorce cases numbered at 1,511 in 2010 and increased to 1,865 last year, while non-Muslim divorce cases were only 793 in 2010 but increased over the years to 1,206 last year.