10 divorce cases recorded a month

BATAM, Riau: The local religious court processes about 10 divorce cases every month which is quite low for an island with a Moslem population of 120,000, according to a local official.

Head of Batam Religious Court office Kuswandi emphasized that the court always tries to reconcile disputing partners but will approve their petition if reconciliation is impossible.

Since the court opened in February 1993, 116 applications for divorce have been filed. All but 20 have been settled, Kuswandi said as reported by the Antara news agency.

The presence of the court is to reduce the rate of divorce, and not to increase it, he said.

The court charges Rp 125,000 for every divorce petition it handles. (emb)