The first marriage hotline opened in Shenzhen recently to help divorced couples either remarry or restore a relationship for the sake of their children’s education.

The hotline, 13246611713, offers free counseling on marriage and family crises, particularly psychological and educational problems of children caused by marriage failures. The counseling can be conducted face-to-face.

It is said to be the first of its kind in south China. Others have been established in northern and eastern cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing and Wuhan.

“Shenzhen has had a high divorce rate in recent years. Many divorced men and women, particularly those with children, realized their decision to divorce was made too quickly and they have had second thoughts with some nostalgia,” said He Huabiao, the hotline operator who claimed to be an expert in sociology and founder of the first hotline in Wuhan.

By helping contact the previous husbands or wives of callers, He tried hard to restore contact between the divorced couples.

Since the hotline opened in early September, He had received dozens of calls asking for help in family and marriage problems.

“The job is not so easy since people in southern cities have a strong sense of self-protection and are careful about their privacy. They seem to be embarrassed and reluctant to come to a hotline for help,” He said.

“Those in good economic circumstances tend to become more accepting when facing marriage failures. They usually don’t care much to remarry their previous husbands or wives for the sake of their children.

“Some people don’t want to try new things such as the hotline,” He said.

“I hope to help rebuild a healthy family atmosphere for more children in single parent families through this hotline,” He said.

(Shenzhen Daily October 11, 2004)