The rate of divorce among Somali couples is incredibly high. The confilicts which arise are mainly due to the redefinition of traditional cultural roles between women and men and the stress of trying to cope in a foreign country. For example, women raise a family without the help of their husbands, yet it is the men who expect to be treated with respect and exert authority as heads of households as they once had in Somalia. These men are expecting to be obeyed without contributing very much to the well-being of the family.
In Somalia, men did not help their wives with household chores and caring for their children because there are many relatives helping them instead. In Canada, however, this kind of support from relatives does not exist, yet Somali men fail to understand that.
The result is an extremely high divorce rate. Marital break-ups are also often the result of there being no mechanism in Canada similar to the one in Somalia of mediation in the event of marital conflicts. Conflicts which might lead to divorce are often solved in Somalia, therefore saving the marriage. Another factor is lack of knowledge of Canadian law. For example, one Somali woman who was angry with her husband called the police but had no intention of charging him with anything. She had just wanted to teach him a lesson. She did not anticipate that the police would adopt harsh measures.
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So, has anything changed?
