Suicide Rate in South Korea Soars

On the platforms in many of Seoul's metro stations, ceiling-high glass gates open and close as passengers enter and exit the subway cars. These barricades were installed for extra safety, but also to prevent people from throwing themselves into the paths of oncoming trains.

In recent years, suicide has been a leading cause of death in South Korea. Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development figures show that more people take their own lives in Korea each year than in other developed nations.

Doctor Hong Kang-Eui, a psychiatrist and the president of the Korean Association for Suicide Prevention, says that the suicide rate rose after Korea became a more prosperous nation.

He says that there is no more “cultural, internal value system, which used to be very strong in Oriental and Korean culture. Society is now too materialistic, too achievement-oriented.”

Changed family structures

What's changed most are family structures. Before Korea’s economic miracle, multiple generations lived together in one home whereas now a Korean family might consist of only three or four individuals.

"The social support system has changed, previously there were very close knit families that were mutually dependent and helped each other but now there are very independent, small families. If something happens, there is very little support from other people,” says Hong Kang-Eui.

The World Health Organisation says that 90 percent of suicides worldwide are the result of mental disorders or depression.

Stigma attached to mental illness

Dr Daniel Fisher is a Massachusetts-based psychiatrist who was asked by the Seoul government to evaluate the psychiatric facilities in South Korea.

"In general, I have found both in Korea and in the United States among Asian Americans that there is a heavier stigma about mental health issues than among non-Asian Americans. I think that increases susceptibility to suicide," he explains.

The Suicide Prevention Association says that this taboo often prevents people from seeking professional help. Instead, many go online in search of others who also feel hopeless.

Doctor Hong says each year his organisation shuts down hundreds of so-called suicide websites, where “suicidal youngsters get together through chat before really meeting and carrying out” their suicides.

The prevention centre teaches parents and teachers how to recognise the signs of someone who is suicidal in hopes of helping them before it’s too late.

Author: Jason Strother
Editor: Anne Thomas