Marriage Problems: Record Numbers In Croatia as 1 In 3 Split

The economic crisis is being blamed for the growing number of failed marriages in Croatia.

“Our marriage was not especially good but obligations and kids kept us going. Then the crisis came. I started working a lot more, it was a lot harder, I was coming home later and later, the whole family became nervous, frustration was growing. My wife had nothing from me, and I had a feeling that all I was doing was working and sleeping. Our lives were split up, and she just decided that’s enough,” 40-year-old Ivan told Croatian newspaper Jutarnji list.

Ivan and his wife are just one of the 3,000 married couples in Croatia to split up this year, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics. The number of marriage break-ups has risen a massive 15 percent compared to the statistics from the same period last year. It is the first time since statistics have been recorded in Croatia, that the number of marriage failures hit 3,000 in one year.

“In marriages where there are already problems, when there are any additional burden of serious financial difficulties, the marriage usually fails to survive,” said Dr, Andelko Akrap.

The number of couples deciding to tie the knot in Croatia is at a similar level as it was in 2011, with 10,686 marriages to date.