Iraqi Marriage Boom

During the regime of Saddam Hussein, young Iraqi couples were greatly impeded from getting married by repressive government regulations and the simple fact that it was unaffordable due to a feeble pre-war economy providing meager income. In addition to letters of recommendation from neighborhood representatives and the security office, a young man would also have to present documentation that he had served in the military. Consequently, divorces were much more common than weddings and bliss was denied to thousands. All that has changed.

Salih Thabet al-Azawi, who head a court in north Baghdad's Kadhemiya district, said that between April and June this year, just over 1,100 couples tied the knot in there, compared with the figure of around 200 which would have been average for the same three-month period in previous years.

According to Azawi, in past years twice as many people were divorcing as marrying. But today, some of the reasons for divorce - such as money problems or the emigration of one of the partners - have faded, and in the last three months only 48 cases have come before him.

The burgeoning post-war economy has raised income levels to the extent that marriage is now affordable.

Civil servants in particular have benefited. Khaldoun Dhiab, 33, a chemical engineer in the public sector, makes the equivalent of 330 US dollars a month now, an 1,800 per cent improvement on the 17 dollars he earned before the war.

It's nice to report good stories. I'm sure there are many more, all ignored by the elite leftist media.