China mandates pause on divorce

Married couples in China jointly filing for separation now must spend a month “cooling-off” before divorcing. The Chinese legislature on Thursday passed a law that delays the processing of divorce requests for 30 days, except in cases of domestic violence.

What prompted the new law? The Chinese government is trying to lower its divorce rates after 4.15 million couples sought to separate last year. But many Chinese citizens are criticizing government interference in their private lives. Posts with the hashtag “oppose divorce cooling off period” on China’s Weibo social media site has drawn more than 30 million views. One user suggested the government also set a waiting period before people wed, since “there must still be a lot of people who marry impulsively.”

Dig deeper: Read Katie Gaultney’s report on how the pandemic has affected wedding plans.