Johannesburg couple divorce after 56 years together
"Grey divorces" are rare in South Africa, but not unheard of.
Have you ever heard of "grey divorces"?
This refers to the phenomenon of older adults past the age of 50, ending their marriages.
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To most people, it seems strange that couples could be together for so many years and then decide to part ways.
It is important to remember that people change a lot during their lives and the person they married 35 years ago might not be the same anymore.
And that's okay.
A recent study looked into the experiences of 44 divorcees who were all 60 years and older.
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According to them, it is a two-phase process, which starts with staying together while growing apart and then realizing the marriage must end.
"Grey divorces" are not a major phenomenon in South Africa, but in 2022, 41 divorces were recorded for people aged 80 years and older, 198 for the ages 70 - 74 and 75 for the 75 - 79 age group.
One SA couple, aged 81 and 78 recently secured an uncontested divorce from the high court of Johannesburg.
TimesLive reports that Judge Stuart Wilson only granted the divorce after asking for further information about the reasoning behind this decision. He also wanted to be certain about their settlement arrangement.
EST and HT had been married in community of property since January 4 1968. EST (who asked for the divorce) said they had lost love and affection for one another, that there was no longer any meaningful communication between them, and that they no longer shared any common interests. After 56 years of marriage, that summary of affairs seemed a little terse. In addition, the settlement agreement placed before me appeared to assign almost all of the marital estate to EST.
Under the terms of the settlement agreement reached between EST and HT, it seemed like HT would only be left with a small Suzuki hatchback. Ownership of the marital home was given solely to EST and HT had also agreed to pay R4,1-million.
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Judge Wilson was concerned about why the settlement seemed to favour one party and asked for more clarification.
In an additional affidavit, HT explained that the couple had not been sleeping in the same bed for 15 years and had lived separate lives. The marital estate settlement agreed to with EST was only half the value, and HT did, in fact, retain the other half.
After this was cleared up, the Judge granted the divorce decree, and the individuals can now continue in their own ways.
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