Abu Dhabi: Experts have warned that before getting married with a foreigner who is unaware of your culture, you should think about the impact of this marriage on you, your children and your family.
Young Emiratis rush to marry non-Emiratis without realising the impact of such a marriage on their lives, a study in Abu Dhabi has revealed.
Is this marriage accepted in the Emirati society and to what extent? Will this marriage generate problems different than those occurring between couples who are both Emiratis?
These are the questions that the Marriage Fund attempted to answer through a study carried out in 2011 on 424 Emirati people who are either already married with non-Emiratis or intend to do so in future.
The study aims at evaluating the level of awareness, among Emirati men, about the negative aspects of marrying non-Emirati women, and observing the type of problems that might arise between the married couple in order to address the problem and enlighten future candidates about the risks and consequences of marrying a non-Emirati woman.
The study showed that a staggering 94 per cent of marriages in this category have experienced significant problems.
According to the study, 82 per cent of Emirati men were aware, to some extent, of the consequences of bringing a foreigner into the family; 49 per cent decided not to marry a foreigner while 41 per cent decided to marry non-Emiratis.
Among the married people, the study revealed that the absence of harmony and agreement between couples are due mainly to differences in cultures, and inability of the non-Emirati women to adapt to the lifestyle of Emirati men, including social, cultural and family obligations.
Some 85.4 per cent of the cases indicated that different cultures have impacted the reinforcement of national identity, especially among the children who feel certain interest and in some cases loyalty to the mother’s home country.
While 84.4 per cent of the marriages have contributed to poorer academic performance of the children due to the inability of the mothers to help them with their homework and studies.
