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For the twelfth year in a row, the number of people who committed suicide in Japan has topped 30,000. According to statistics released by the National Police Agency on January 26, a total of 32,753 people took their own lives in 2009. This was the fifth highest toll in history, an increase of 504 persons over the 2008 figure and on average one such death every 16 minutes. (Maryknoll Father William Grimm, UCA News)
Thirty years ago, the “typical” suicide was a woman in her 20’s or 30’s who faced romantic difficulties such as a break up with a boyfriend or the prospect of never finding a spouse. Another group was women who suffered marital difficulties. These often killed their children as well, since it would be poor mothering to leave them orphans.
Nowadays, the profile has changed, with 71 percent of 2009’s suicides being men. The most common reason for killing themselves is financial difficulties, the loss of a job or unpayable debts.
Another group that has recently attracted attention because of a spike in suicides are children. Schoolyard bullying and poor grades seem to be behind this phenomenon.
FULL STORY
Japan’s suicide mission (UCA News)
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