A Fair to Remember

LONDON, Oct 26, 2007— -- It may not be the most upbeat event on your calendar, but Anton Barz, the organizer of the divorce fair Starting Your Life Over, believes his event helps couples make the best out of a bad situation by helping them untie the knot in the most painless way possible.

Starting Your Life Over, taking place in several cities throughout Austria, kicks off this weekend in Vienna. To avoid any awkward encounters between partners who wish to keep their attendance a secret, Saturday sessions are reserved for men and Sundays for women.

Austria's divorce rate has been growing, peaking at 50 percent in 2006 with the rate in Vienna alone rising to 66 percent.

"I have seen this every year -- the divorce rates get higher and higher," Barz told ABC News. "The fair helps people to find the right way and to start a new life"

Twenty exhibitors will attend, aiming to provide as much information on support networks for couples who are separating or divorced. These include lawyers, mediators, counselors, private investigator firms and companies offering DNA paternity testing.

Also on hand will be government organizations, whose goal is to give support to women in abusive relationships who are fleeing their homes. Services include providing housing and legal support to battered women.

Interestingly, there will also be representation from groups affiliated with the Catholic Church, such as the Austrian Single Parent Organization, whose aim is to highlight the plight of children during a divorce. While the church is strongly opposed to divorce, it recognizes that single-parent families are in need of a support network.

"The most important thing for us is to point out what kind of help or support those families can get," organization spokeswoman Christine Gurtner told ABC News. "Religion does not really matter. It's of utmost importance to let people know what we can do to help and support them when they find themselves in that kind of a situation."

While some may argue that the fair could foster Austria's already robust divorce rate, Barz vigorously denies this, claiming that he is providing a necessary service that helps those going through the trauma of separation.

Barz is himself happily married -- he has even organized wedding fairs in the past. But when he saw how many marriages around him were breaking apart, he decided to host a divorce fair.

Barz believes the divorce rate could be minimized if the government approached it the way religious organizations approach marriage by using instruction from a representative to highlight the importance of entering into such a union.

Barz believes that many couples just don't understand the level of commitment a marriage requires. "If they marry and they don't see the responsibility of the marriage, then they don't know what the responsibilities are."

If all goes well Barz will be taking his fair abroad. Germany, England, Australia and California have all expressed interest.