Increased Divorce Cases in Hong Kong
Introduction
Hong Kong has experienced numerous cases of divorce over the years. As a result of that the Hong Kong University Family Institute (HKUFI) initiated a project on Children in Divorce Families in the year 2010. They researched on approximately 900 cases as directed by the Family court. From the research, it was found that the lifespan of marriage lies between 11.5 to 12.7 years (A study on the phenomenon of divorce in Hong Kong, 2014). The length is highly dependent on the number of children in that marriage with those without children filling more cases and the rest, and their average length is as low as 7 years of marriage. Couples with two or one kid had an average period of 14.3 years, while those with more than two children their marriage had an average of 22.2 years.
Increase in this cases affected children are on the rise. These children go through financial challenges and are more affected by the economic changes than the rest of the population. From history, in the year 1981, there were 2,062 cases which were granted divorce decrees but this number has grown to 23,255 by the year 2012. The population of the children who are directly affected by this situation has increased from 4 percent in the year 2001 to 7 percent in 2011.
Impact of increased divorce cases
Victims of divorce or any marital conflict are either affected positively or negatively. Some of the negative challenges experienced are distress, depression, and sadness. These feelings are as a result of the brutality of the husband towards the children or the mother thus instilling fear on them. Other causes include the fear of becoming a single parent and pressure from relatives and other people around you. The complicated legal process also triggers these negative feelings. Contrary to that we also have positive impacts which constitute involvement in meaningful social activities, enhanced self-confidence, freedom, and better bonding with the children.
Children most of the time face negative challenges in their studies, and decline in social norms. They are demoralized and lack reasons to continue with their studies, fell inferior, become stubborn at school, and are often short-tempered when dealing with family issues. This negative response among the children makes them less happy and confident. Parents and stakeholders at schools should review various specific programs put in place by various countries, to safeguard the right of the victims of divorce. The programs need to be incorporated the programs in the schools to help the children control their emotions and regain their confidence at school.
How Law is Changing Divorce in Hong Kong
Although the law is trying much to reconcile the two parties their policies mostly sound good, but putting them into practice is often hard. The proceedings of a case in court will be helpful to the children when their interests are prioritized. The parents should negotiate their way forward for the best interests of their kids (Philippa & Angie, 2016). A well though procedure leads to a faster and better recovery from the divorce trauma. During an interview with a family court judge, he was asked the following question.” How can the legal process minimize the effect on children?” On his answer to he stated that the court will always base its judgment on a child’s welfare. He added that the parents are also expected to consider a solution which can be accommodated by the children with minimum adjustments from their current state.
Lawyers have found that the adversarial system of trial is not favorable to the children; the sentence offered always drag children to one side without considering their comfort. They have recently advocated for alternative methods of solving disputes such as mediation which are based on the child’s well-being. Use of such approaches the impact of divorce of children will be minimum.
Mediation, in particular, brings in a third party on board. This member who is a trained mediator is tasked with the responsibility of finding a solution out of the contributions from the couple (A study on the phenomenon of divorce in Hong Kong, 2014). In the process, he can sort guidance of a lawyer if need be, the process is free of prejudice, the parties voluntarily give their opinion, with the confidence that whatever they say will not be used against them later. The final decision from a mediation process should be accommodated by all the players without strain. The popularity of this process has gained ground and the law has the mandate of penalizing a party which has refused to attend its proceedings.
The judicial arm in Hong Kong encouraged the parents to put in place a parenting plan before they are granted a divorce certificate. The plan should indicate time and period a parent is allowed to see the children when he or she should take the children for extracurricular activities finally, they also need to agree on how the kids spend their holidays. After the mediation gives this guideline, they are taken to the court for ratification.
Another method encouraged by the court in dealing with this matter is called the Collaborative Practice. This method involves coming to a solution without going to court. In a Collaborative Practice, the facilitators should be qualified lawyers as well as children specialists, who can provide a sane judgment on the future of the children. The specialist teaches the parents on how to handle the case and in most instances; they speak on behalf of the children. The parents and the children can return to their coaches whenever they face challenges in their co-parenting experience after divorce. The periodic Psychological may at a times lead to remarriage or one parent being tasked with the responsibility of the kids. Right choices should be made timely when the parents find out they have no life living together. The step they make affect the child’s life forever, therefore the decision needs time and brilliant minds.
Reasons for Divorce
Normally divorces are as a result of complications between the couples. The misunderstanding in most cases is unexpected. The highest contributor to the divorces and separations in the world is extramarital affairs. In the early 1990s, a decline in traditional norms was experienced. Hong Kong residents from all walked was involved in sexual affairs with people from Mainland China. The number of unmarried women in the region is very high. This surplus in the number of unmarried ladies has contributed to the increased unfaithfulness in marriages. Another contributor to this is the introduction of women’s labor market. Women are more involved in the economic growth thus not fulfilling the conjugal needs of their husbands. On the other side, at the workplace men and women interact closely thus leading to sexual contact between workmates.
Other causes of divorce in the city apart from fidelity include physical abuse, incompatible personalities and emotional abuse. The decrease in fertility among the couples has also increased the probability of divorce in the community (Philippa & Angie, 2016). Children can command the future of a marriage, therefore, in a case where children are not involved it is easier for one to walk away. Finally, young people are being engaged in marriage who when faced by few challenges they run away from their union.
From a number of interviews carried out, it arrived at that most people who found themselves on crossroads got married without any affection between the couple. They confessed that they were dragged into marriage as a result of childbirth from unplanned pregnancies in most cases.
Conclusion and Recommendation
The divorce cases are on the rise in Hong Kong demographically, people who engage on remarriages are also increasing. The number of children and presence of children in a marriage determines the probability of divorce in a marriage. It is not yet proven that the availability of cross-border marriage has triggered more divorce cases in the city. Divorce increases financial challenges in the family and also reduces the income of the community. Most of these families live below the poverty line. Single parents are forced to work in primary industries to sustain themselves and the children left for them. There is also a reduction in the level of education in the community since a good number of the children drop out school and venture into business and employment.
The families involved are in a great need of housing and financial support. They also need to be empowered emotionally; their children’s education should be protected by subsidizing their school fee. The processes involved in securing public housing facilities and filing a divorce case should be readily available at minimum cost.
The government should train more marital counselors, who will help the victims go through the trauma, give gender-sensitive support, and also provide pre-marital counseling to the couples before they are married. The government needs also to embrace alternative methods of solving divorce cases such as sorting the services of a mediator (A study on the phenomenon of divorce in Hong Kong, 2014). Finally, the family court should be strengthened to deal with these matters. They should have the authority to collect data from the separated couple and then giving better solutions and ways to deal with the children’s needs.
References
(2014). A study on the phenomenon of divorce in Hong Kong. THE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG. Hong Kong: Center for Suicide Research and Prevention, The University of Hong Kong February 2014.
- H., & A. T. (2016, January 31). Parenting-teens “How Hong kong can Minimise the Impact of Divorce on their Children”. South China Morning Post “Families”, 10.
