The Trend Of Divorce Increases Due To Women Being Independent?

Raisa Andriani and Hamish Daud are currently undergoing divorce after marriage since 2017. (Instagram/@hamishdw)

JAKARTA The divorce rate has increased in recent years. What is of concern is that the divorce structure in Indonesia is dominated by a divorce suit, namely a lawsuit filed by the wife.

In the Google search engine, the keyword cerai is one of the most popular. This fact cannot be separated from the news of the divorce of singer Raisa Andriana and Hamish Daud's akor.

Last October, shocking news emerged from the Indonesian celebrities about Raisa's divorce from Hamish Daud. In fact, it is still attached to the memory of how the fans marked September 3, 2017 as National Heart Break Day, when Raisa and Hamish tied the sacred promise in their marriage. This pair of singers and actors is said to be a couple of goals or ideal pairs of dreams for Indonesian citizens.

Raisa's divorce case is only a bit of a wider reality. Divorce is not only experienced by celebrities, because it has recently become a social portrait that is getting closer to society.

Data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) contains 399,921 divorce cases throughout 2024. This figure has decreased slightly compared to 2023 which reached 408,347 cases. Even so, this number is still much higher than before the COVID-19 pandemic, which was only 291,677 cases.

Meanwhile, the number of marriages in Indonesia continues to decline. In 2020, for example, there were around 1.78 million marriages recorded, while in 2024 the number shrank to only 1.47 million.

However, the current spotlight is not only about the reason for the separation, but the structure of divorce which is dominated by divorce from the lawsuit, namely the lawsuit filed by the wife.

According to BPS data, in 2024 there will be 308,956 cases of lawsuit divorce or about 77.2 percent of the total national divorce. Meanwhile, the divorce case, which was filed by the husband, was 85,652 cases.

This phenomenon shows that women now have greater courage to determine their own destiny, including when choosing to leave relations that are no longer healthy.

According to Heidi Kar, a psychologist and expert on domestic violence at the Center for Education Development in the United States, there are several reasons behind the recent increase in divorce cases. One of them is the financial independence experienced by women making them more daring to file for divorce.

"Because economic independence is a must before a woman can try to leave the marriage, either alone or with children who have to be financed, it is very difficult for women to leave the wedding unless they have a way to make their own money," he said.

"In various cultures and geogrations, women who are economically able to take care of themselves are more likely to start a divorce," continued Heidi Kar.

However, the increase in economic independence alone does not explain why women are more likely to file for divorce than their husbands.

Many women, said Heidi Kar, have high expectations about marriage and in fact this is not in line with reality. Women often have high hopes about how their partner meets emotional needs, which can actually lead to post-marriage disappointment.

The disbursement of women's expectations about marriage is explained by licensed couple therapist Gilza Fort-Martinez. He said that men are usually socialized to have lower emotional intelligence than women, so that it can cause couples to feel unsupported and do a lot of emotional work in relationships. This emotional intelligence also means that women are more sensitive to problems and signs of danger in relationships.

Meanwhile, Professor of Sociology at the Faculty of Social and Cultural Sciences (FISIB) Trunojoyo University Khoirul Rosyadi highlighted various factors that caused divorce in Indonesia.

He explained that divorce is generally triggered by misunderstandings and conflicts in the household that are difficult to resolve. In addition, economic problems and family financial instability can also trigger it.

Khoirul also added that domestic violence (KDRT), both physically and psychologically, often makes relationships unsafe.

"In addition, online gambling is a factor that still needs to be further proven how it affects divorce," he said.

Regarding the dominance of divorce claims by his wife, Rosyadi assessed that this condition reflected changes in gender relations and increased awareness and independence of women in making decisions about their own lives.