A Shanghai marriage registration office displays a sign warning about risks in the property market and telling buyers to think twice before getting divorced. Divorce rates in some major cities have risen dramatically in the first three quarters, with experts saying many couples are divorcing to avoid paying property taxes. [Photo provided to China Daily]

About 4,500 couples in the Dali Bai autonomous prefecture in Yunnan province, Southwest China gave up the idea of divorce last year thanks to the introduction of a grace period for divorce proceedings promoted in 2015 by the local government, Guangming Online reported on Sunday. The website comments:

The civil affairs departments in various regions established grace periods to allow couples to reconsider their decisions. Also some coordination offices were set up to offer counseling to the couples.

There has been criticism that such grace periods violate the right of residents to get a divorce by deliberately prolonging the procedure. However, the fundamental purpose of the grace periods is to protect impulsive and irrational couples from making the wrong decision. The grace periods actually offer them a chance to consider if they are really making the right decision.

The fact that the divorce rate dropped by 60 percent reveals the positive effect the grace periods have had.

On the one hand, divorces lead to a variety of family tragedies, such as disputes over the division of property and conflicts over the issue of child support. On the other hand, if a couple regrets their decision, even though they may remarry, they still waste social resources. From this perspective, the divorce delay system not only helps maintain social harmony and stability but also saves public resources.

Of course, delaying a divorce is not the denial of the right to a divorce; its ultimate purpose is to save marriages. For those couples whose relationships completely break down and show there is no possibility of reconciliation, so long as the procedure is observed, the civil affairs department will respect their choice and grant the divorce after the end of the grace period.