More than 100 Syrian couples tied the knot with a mass wedding in the capital, Damascus, late last week in an effort to ease the financial burden on young people who cannot afford the huge cost of a traditional, individual wedding. “This event is very important,” said Abdel Razeq al-Mounis, deputy minister of Awqaf, or religious endowments. “It makes it easier for young people to get married and shows that the spirit of love and cooperation overcomes egotism. “Marriage protects society,” he added. “It protects young people from becoming lost and corrupt.” The wedding party, held in a public square in the Qaboun district of Damascus on Thursday, was organised and paid for by al-Qaboun charity association, a local NGO. As the 112 grooms wearing traditional Damascene robes over their suits entered the square, they were welcomed by a traditional zeffa (a group of drummers) as guests cheered. According to tradition, the brides did not attend the ceremony. The event started with a recitation of the Quran followed by inshad (hymns) praising the prophet. In Syria, such wedding parties are held only in Damascus at the moment, where they are being financially supported by one particular NGO. But they are also becoming increasingly popular, with couples travelling from rural areas to take part, organisers said. The mass wedding parties have arisen over the last few years in response to the limited income and resources of much of the population. Almost two million people, from a total population of some 18 million, are classified as poor, according to a 7 July government report on poverty in Syria. Poverty had fallen since 1996 in the rural southern and urban coastal regions, but per capita expenditure had fallen in the context of an increase in poverty in rural northeastern regions, the report said. Low educational attainment emerged as a key indicator of poverty, with 57 percent of the unemployed finishing only the lower grades in school. “Rich people [in Syria] like to overspend on wedding parties, and this ceremony has removed any distinction between the poor and the rich,” said Tawfik al-Falah, a 26-year-old baker from Daraa province, south of Damascus. Al-Falah, who earns US $80 a month, said he had feared he would never be able to marry because of the costs involved.
Bridegrooms celebrate their happy day at the mass wedding party. |
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions