Divorce is becoming normalized, as swift divorce rate reaches 10-year high
Divorce is becoming normalized, as swift divorce rate reaches 10-year high
2022-12-27
Taiwan’s divorce rate for newly-married couples reached a ten-year-high in 2021, according to official figures. Almost 48,000 couples divorced last year, and 35% of them had been married less than five years. Divorce has become largely normalized in Taiwanese society in the last decade. We spoke to a stationery shop owner who sells divorce agreement papers; he says both buyers and sellers have become much more relaxed about the issue.
On the shelves of this stationery shop you can find notebooks and templates for every kind of document imaginable. A big sign on the wall announces the “Divorce Agreements” with an arrow underneath to make it even more clear.
Member of public
I think it’s good, it makes it easier for people who need to find them, because lots of people need them now.
But how many of these agreements are sold? The shop owner says that seven or eight years ago, he would get 10 or 20 copies in and they’d last six months or a year. Now he orders new copies every month.
Chou Shu-hsien
Stationery shop owner
I was born in the 50s. In the old days, the culture used to be that people would tell you to make up, not to get divorced. Twelve years ago we didn’t have these divorce agreement documents. The first time my supplier sent me one, it shocked me. I said, “Has it reached the point, now, that we can publicly sell divorce agreements?” When we first started selling them, it wasn’t just that the people buying them were shy about it; even we, selling them, felt guilty. Gradually over these 12 years people have got more relaxed and open about buying them.
Member of public
Lots of my friends are divorced. They don’t call it “divorce”, they say they’re entering a second marriage, or going back to being single. Women are all more economically capable, so it’s not like it used to be in my parents’ time. They needed to rely on their husbands.
Statistics from the Ministry of the Interior show that there were 47,888 divorces in Taiwan in 2021. That’s 3,722 fewer than in 2020, but still 131 divorces a day. Meanwhile, almost 35% of those couples had been married less than five years. That’s the highest rate for quick divorces over the last 10 years.
離婚協議書太暢銷? 書局貼大張公告笑翻網
2022-12-27
2021年台灣離婚對數，總共4萬7888對，平均每天就有131對離婚，而其中又以婚齡未滿5年，占35%最多，創下近10年新高，有間文具店就嗅到商機，特別將「離婚協議書」擺放的位置，貼上最大張的告示，底下還有箭頭標註方向，引起網友熱議。
文具店的架上，各式紙本文件琳瑯滿目，「離婚協議書」卻被貼上最大張的告示，底下還有箭頭標註方向。
[[民眾]]
“這樣很好啊，需要的人比較方便找嘛，因為現在需要的人比較多。”
離婚協議書有多賣，文具店老闆說7、8年前，進貨10幾、20張，就可以賣上半年、一年，現在則是每個月，都要進貨。
[[文具店老闆周書賢]]
“我是4年級(1950年代生)的年代，早期我們的民風，就是勸和不勸離。12年前沒有離婚協議書這樣的文件，第一次業務員送離婚協議書進來，我都嚇一跳，我說現在已經進步到，有離婚協議書可以公開？那剛開始賣的時候，不管是買的人很靦腆，我們賣的人也很心虛的感覺，12年來慢慢的客人也比較大方的買。”
[[民眾]]
“滿多朋友都離婚，他們也不會說離婚，他們都說是二婚，還是回到單身。女生都滿有自己的經濟能力啊，所以就比較不會像以前我爸媽那個年代，他們就比較需要看老公。”
根據內政部最新統計，2021年台灣離婚對數，總共4萬7888對，較2020年減少3722對，平均每天就有131.20對離婚，而其中又以婚齡，未滿5年占34.75%最多，創下近10年新高。
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