In March, China began regulating the number of properties families could buy, prompting couples around the country to file for divorce so they could buy more properties. In Nanjing, the schools available to children were tied to household registration, causing another wave of divorces in that city (we wrote about this one, citing Louis CK). So what’s a poor government to do in the face of that terrible loophole to its policy?
More regulations! No more divorces for you, Nanjingers. Reports Global Times:
The Nanjing-based newspaper Modern Express reported on Monday that the marriage registration office of the Gulou district in Nanjing first started such a restriction policy in early March, as the number of divorce cases the office was handling far exceeded expectations.
The rate had been spiraling out of control.
Ma Hong, an official from Nanjing Bureau of Civil Affairs, said some 18,311 couples had filed for divorce in the first six months this year, 1.7 times the number from the same time last year.
We’re not entirely sure how one now files for divorce now. Via lottery, like with license plates in Beijing? Can you imagine wanting to leave a psychologically draining, life-sapping, spiritually abusive marriage, but being told you can’t because that dipshit over there also wants to end his marriage so he/she can increase the family’s material assets?
There is, of course, a Louis CK joke for the occasion again:
Nanjing limits divorce applications in reaction to property, school rule evaders (Global Times)
Is it really a divorce though? Like I know people who get divorced because of benefits, they still live together, share the same kids, and no one in the whole neighbourhood knows that they’re actually LEGALLY divorced.
Marriage has never been about being in love. It’s always about benefits. Getting married for love is a new thing really in the face of history. When there is no benefit for getting married and no law against living together with your life partner and children what the hell is the point of getting married? If my husband came to me and was like our children can get into a better school if we pretend to split up, I’d accept an divorce. Isn’t like the government is gonna come to our house everyday and check if we stopped banging. Better than getting a fake marriage and not living together I’d say.
Anthony, really if there is no material benefit to getting married, we can just go on banging our life partners as if we were. You can even have a wedding without actually legally being married.
“We’re not entirely sure how one now files for divorce now.”
Really? How long have you lived in China exactly?