Fact for the Day: Suicide in Japan

 

Kongōbu-ji | Wikimedia Commons

Japan has one of the world's highest suicide rates, with suicide being the leading cause of death among men age 20-44 and women age 15-34. Despite having a population of 126 million, over 30 thousand men and women in Japan commit suicide every year, almost 90 per day and nearly as many as the United States (a nation of 315 million). Suicide has become such a problem in the country that former prime minister Naoto Kan declared his main political goal is to "minimize unhapiness." In 2007, the national minister of agriculture, Toshikatsu Matsuoka, killed himself amidst a financial scandal; since then, the government has made attempts to change the cultural perception and treatment of suicide.

Unlike Western cultures, suicide is not associated with the Judeo-Christian concept of sin; in fact, in traditional Japanese culture there is a romantic notion of suicide as a noble or honorable death. During the feudal period, the samurai were obligated to perform seppuku, ritual self-disembowelment, to receive an honorable death, rather than face defeat or capture. Fighter pilots during the Second World War turned their planes into guided missiles to execute kamikaze ("divine wind") for the same reasons. Deemed inseki-jisatsu, some Japanese consider suicide a responsible way to relieve debt or restore personal and family honor.

Motosu-ko before Fuji-san | Wikimedia Commons

The despair that results from poverty, unemployment, and other personal financial crises are especially poignant in Japan. A strong patriarchal tradition still exists in Japan, and with it heavy expectations from family and society. Ever since the economic downturn of 1997, the Japanese economy has been particularly stagnant among the fully industrialized nations. As a result, many Japanese men have struggled with the insecurities and stigmas associated with job loss and unemployment.

Despite generally sophisticated health services, national authorities can certainly improve their approach to mental health. New anti-depressant drugs are restricted long after they have been accepted in other countries and national health insurance doesn't provide for counseling at private clinics. Japan's largest suicide helpline has struggled to garner funding and only receives 27 thousand calls per year. By comparison, the largest comparable utility in the United Kingdom (a country with half Japan's population) takes nearly 2.5 million.

Unfortunately, for the foreseeable future it seems suicide will remain an immense, entrenched problem in Japan. Suicide councilor Hiroshi Sakamoto concluded of his nation's struggle, "Until we stop denying the reality of the situation, I don't think Japanese society can overcome the crisis it is facing."

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