South Korean Men Must Take Marriage Classes

Men in South Korea who wish to marry a foreign woman are now required to enroll in courses designed to teach them how to be a good husband to a non-Korean bride, reports the Christian Science Monitor. The mandatory lessons come on the heels of a surge in failed marriages among middle-aged men and their younger spouses who hail from Vietnam, the Philippines, Cambodia, and Mongolia.

Korean women are increasingly moving out of their hometowns and into cities to start a career, shifting the demographics and leaving many older men with no option but to seek brides from outside of the country. More than 100,000 female immigrants, many of whom are looking to escape the poverty of their home countries, are now wedded to Korean men. Contributing to the rash of broken marriages, say experts, is the lack of government oversight of agencies that find brides for Korean men. (More South Korea stories.)