Monetary troubles have overtaken infidelity because the # 1 cause for divorce as circumstances rise amid a pandemic

PETALING JAYA: Money matters appear to have replaced infidelity as the “last straw” in the surge in divorce cases among Malaysians during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Sarawak Syarie Lawyers Association President Harizan Hamzah and Selangor Bar Chairman V. Kokila Vaani told theSun that many who filed for divorce were to blame for the financial difficulties they faced due to the pandemic faced.

“Many had lost their jobs and their incomes, and this eventually led to the breakdown of their marriages,” they said.

Harizan said the pandemic opened the eyes of many couples as women in particular are brave to come out of an unhappy marriage due to exposure to a lot of knowledge.

“During the lockdowns, we were confronted with knowledge of our rights through webinars or social media platforms,” she said.

Kokila said for some married couples the long quarantine period was viewed as a honeymoon to spend some time together, but for others it was a nightmare to be with their partners with no where to go.

“I remember having a client who wanted to get divorced over too much to talk about, and the smallest things like not putting the toilet seat up could cause an argument,” she said.

“An argument that seemed far-fetched is now a reality during the pandemic,” she said.

Harizan and Kokila recently commented in parliament on a response from the Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s (Legal Department) Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin that an average of 140 divorce petitions are filed across the country every day.

Of these, 121 were from Muslim couples.

Harizan said that even before the pandemic, many struggled with their partners and some probably just took it for their children’s sake and maybe they weren’t the breadwinners for their families.

“Compared to their peers in the ’70s or even’ 90s, when the cases weren’t high, couples now have more knowledge about their rights,” she said.

“This has led to an increase in the number of women now brave enough to file for divorce and fight for justice because they are able to live independently without fear of being awarded the title of ‘janda’ (divorced) “, she said.

“Before the pandemic, their rights were not educated, but now that they have a lot of time at home, they spend more time surfing the Internet,” she said.

She recalled one case where her physically abused client finally quit the marriage, which is good for her. Another common factor leading to divorce among Muslims was when their partner’s biggest secret – getting a second wife – was revealed.

Harizan recalled one case when a woman found out that her husband had married another woman years ago but only became aware of it during the lockdown.

“That secret came to light when everyone was locked up in their own home, so the woman found out that her husband had cheated on her,” she said.

For her, the saddest case she handled was a couple who had just turned 18 or 19 when the husband filed for divorce after the wife was born.

“It happened last year when this couple filed for divorce and when I called them to discuss their case, it didn’t end well as they argued like two children,” she said.

Kokila, the first female chairwoman of the Selangor Bar, said other marital irritations during the MCO were too much screen time, uneven distribution of housework and childcare, depression and anxiety.

“In the past, infidelity was the main reason clients forgave before the MCO,” she said.