Internet 'fuels suicide risk'

2004-12-02 12:14

Paris - A rash of group suicides that has shaken Japan is a worrying sign of the internet's potential for encouraging suicide pacts, the British Medical Journal (BMJ) says.

In the latest incident, seven people were found dead on Monday, bringing to at least 26 the number of Japanese who have died in suspected suicide pacts in less than two months.

In an editorial published in next Saturday's BMJ, London consultant psychiatrist Sundararajan Rajagopal notes that some of the pacts are reported to have been arranged over the internet and involved complete strangers.

On October 13, nine people killed themselves in two group deaths, organised by women who had made contact via the internet.

"This is in contrast to traditional suicide pacts, in which the victims are people with close relationships," says Rajagopal.

It could be the start of "a new, disturbing trend in suicide pacts, with more such incidents, involving strangers meeting over the internet, becoming increasingly common", he says.

He cites British and American studies which say that, until now, suicide pacts represent only a tiny minority - less than one percent - of total suicides, and they usually involve just two people.

The couple are typically lovers or friends and the trigger for their suicide deal is often mental illness, which occurs in half of the cases, or physical illness, which occurs in about a third.

The risk is that the internet may break this limiting mould, says Rajogopal.

It adds to the incentive of suicide because it puts deeply depressed people in touch with each other via chat rooms, while there are numerous websites which give advice on how to end one's life.

- AFP