A changing society

By Martin Hellicar

THE DIVORCE rate in Cyprus has almost quadrupled in the past 16 years, the government demographic report for 1996 shows.

The Statistics and Research department study, released yesterday, states the divorce rate in 1980 was only 4.2 per cent, whereas by 1996 the rate had risen to 14.4 per cent.

There were 725 divorces in 1996, a slight drop compared to the 1995 total of 757.

The report notes that the divorce rate continues to be “extremely low” compared to other European countries, where one marriage in two ends in divorce.

There was a drop in the number of marriages in 1996 which the report attributes to a “persistent prejudice” against marrying in leap years. A total of 11,522 people tied the knot in 1996. The report also notes a continuous rising trend in the age of first marriage. The mean age of men at first marriage rose from 25.7 in the period 1974 to 1977 to 27.7 in the period 1993 to 1996 and for women from 22.9 to 25.1 respectively.

The population of the government-controlled areas increased by 1 per cent last year and was estimated at 651,800. Almost 70 per cent of people lived in towns.

The number of children born in 1996 dropped slightly compared to the previous year to 9,638 from 9,869, but the birth rate in Cyprus remains high compared to other developed countries, the report notes. Life expectancy compares favourably with that of more developed countries, the study states, though infant mortality is slightly higher.

Life expectancy at birth stands at 75 for males and 80 for females and infant mortality at 8.3 deaths per 1,000 live births.

The report states the main causes of death last year as diseases of the circulatory and respiratory systems, tumours and accidents, injuries and poisonings.

On migration, the report admits accurate figures do not exist but states there are “indications” of a flow of Cypriots returning to the island from abroad and of foreign workers arriving for temporary employment. Last year, the number of people arriving to live on the island exceeded the number emigrating by 1,800.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.