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Damascus, Feb 21 (IANS) Divorce rate has gone up by 45 percent and marriage rate has dropped over 40 percent in Syria since the outbreak of protests against the government, show a media survey. Due to constant conflict between the rebels and the government forces, divorced Syrians are set to outnumber married ones soon, the survey indicated. Syrians live in a country plagued by violence and burdened by spiralling inflation and unemployment. Maha, a 35-year-old housewife, said her marriage was falling apart as her family suffered from the 23-month-old crisis. "My husband has been provoking quarrels with me for the most trivial things, apparently in an attempt to drive me to file for divorce," she told Xinhua. The mother of three kids said things had been smooth with her husband, who used to work 10 hours a day to support his family, but shortly after the outbreak of the crisis, "our economy started to deteriorate and he eventually lost his job". She said that her husband tried hard to find another job but in vain. She added that nobody could help them as the crisis was affecting all Syrians alike. Also, according to the survey, some couples file for divorce for reasons that had been non-existent before the crisis. There are people divorcing their spouses for holding different opinions on whether or not to support President Bashar al-Assad. The survey revealed marriages are on a decline in Syria particularly during the last 10 months of the crisis. "I think we are on the cusp of seeing marriage becoming less central to our life course...," said Ayham, a 35-year-old accountant. He said Syrians now prefer to wait a little longer before getting married due to the ongoing crisis, which rendered many people unable to afford a house or support their family.
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