Divorces up 4%, most filed by women

ALMOST half of divorces processed in the country during 2014 were for marriages that had not reached their 10year mark.

The divorces were between couples in their early to mid-40s, with 55% of them affecting children younger than 18.

Statistics SA yesterday said the 25 000 divorces that year were an increase of 3.4% from the previous year’s 23 885, and most of the divorce applicants were women.

During the same year, there were 155 058 marriages registered, of which 150 852 were civil marriages, 3 062 customary and 1 144 civil unions.

The report, titled Marriages and Divorces 2014, drew comparison with data collected in 2013 and showed a drop of 4% and 12% for civil and customary marriages respectively. “But civil unions increased by 15%,” Stats SA said.

The laws of the country recognise the three forms of marriage and regulate each person to one type at a time, with the exception of monogamous customary marriages, in which a couple can also get married under the Marriage Act.

The civil marriage allows for marriage under the Marriage Act, and is between a man and a woman.

Customary marriage is allowed for the registration of marriage under African customary law, which allows polygamous marriages.

Civil union recognises couples married across the gender spectrum and subjects them to the same conditions as those married under the Marriage Act.

In their analysis of 2014 marriages, Stats SA noted trends, including seasonal monthly variations, in the registration of civil marriages.

“Generally, the warmer months, from September and peaking in December, were the most popular for civil marriages,” the report said.

The Easter holidays

also proved popular for civil marriages.

The highest number of weddings in 2014 took place in December, while June recorded the lowest (6%).

In most marriages, both bride and groom were getting married for the first time, but there were more men (3%) getting married for the second time, and a small percent (1.1%) were widowers.

Of the women, 2% were divorcees. Less than 1% were widows, the statistics showed.

Age

The 3 000 customary marriages registered indicated a decrease of 12% from 2013, and the age trend showed that more women were married under customary law before they turned 18.

Men were generally older than their brides, with an age difference of between five and six years.

The number of couples who entered into civil unions increased to 1 144 from 993 in 2013, with 452 couples coming from Gauteng. The Western Cape registered 314, and the lowest numbers came from Mpumalanga, with nine civil unions registered.

The 24 689 divorces processed in 2014 were dominated by black couples.

Stats SA reported that 37% of divorced couples were black and 28% white.

In 34% of the divorces, the men were the initiators and, with the exception of the black population, who had fewer women filing for divorce, women in the other population groups constituted above 50% of women filing for divorce.

About 58% of white women, 57% of coloured women and 55% of Indian/Asian women filed for divorce from their spouses.

Data for the report was collected from, among other sources, the South African national marriage registration systems of the Department of Home Affairs and the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development.