A form- three student committed suicide in Kasagam ‘A’ sub- location in Kisumu East on Thursday night in unclear circumstances.
Confirming the incident, Kisumu East Sub- County Police Commander Edward Masibo said the father of the deceased came from work on Thursday at around 6:00pm only to be met by the son`s lifeless body hanging on a sisal rope from the rafters of their rented house.
The deceased, Collins Achola Otieno.17 is said to have recently dropped out of school in Form Three y and was living with his father in the said rented house.
It’s not clear what drove the teenager to commit suicide but police are investigating the matter. The suicide note he left behind did not reveal much, only indicating where he preferred to be buried.
The body of the deceased has been moved to Kisumu Referral Hospital mortuary pending postmortem and further investigation into the incident as the family prepares for the burial.
There are 720,000 suicide deaths reported per year globally and 14 million reports of attempted suicide. Closer home, Kenya reports an average of four deaths per day from suicide and an average of 470 cases of attempted suicide reported to the police. The real numbers are likely much higher due to underreporting.
During this year`s celebration of the International Day of Suicide held every September 10, the United Nations (UN) the head of the UN’s World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called for “shifting the narrative” on the suicide issue “to challenge harmful myths, reduce stigma and foster compassionate conversations.”
In Kenya, human rights activists have been calling for change of law to stop the country from charging people who attempt suicide with attempted murder arguing that this action stems from mental sickness and such people should be helped instead of being charged in court.
In 2021, the last year for which data was gathered by WHO on suicide, the vice is listed as the third leading cause of death among 15 to 29 – year- olds globally in. Close to three quarters of global suicides occurred in low and middle-income countries in 2021.The average number of suicides across the world in 2021 was 8.9 per 100,000 people.
In Africa the figure stood at 11.5, while in both Europe and Southeast Asia the number of suicides was recorded at 10.1 per 100,000 people. The social vice is said to permeate all regions of the world and all social strata.
Globally, the lowest suicide rate was in the Eastern Mediterranean region at 4.0 per 100,000, while in the Western Pacific it was 7.5 per 100,000. In 2017, a WHO report ranked Kenya as the sixth African country and at position 114th globally among 175 countries with the highest levels of depression with at least 1.9 million diagnosed Kenyans suffering from depression.
Cases of suicide are on increase in the country at alarming rate causing concern among health stakeholders.
Since the advent of the Covid-19 pandemic in the country, cases of suicide have been rising as many people, both young and old continue to find themselves into depression and other mental illnesses due to the economic hardship and other challenges that have been brought about by the pandemic.
Data from the Ministry of Health shows that more than 370 people have committed suicide in Kenya in the last six months of 2020 pointing to the gravity of the mental health situation in the country since the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic and Kisumu County has also had its share of this social misfortune.
Stressful life events (such as the loss of a loved one, legal troubles, or financial difficulties) and interpersonal stressors (such as shame, harassment, bullying, discrimination, or relationship troubles) may contribute to suicide risk, especially when they occur along with suicide risk factors.
by Mabel Keya-Shikuku
