By SHINICHI SEKINE/ Staff Writer
October 20, 2023 at 18:02 JST
The building housing the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare in Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
A record high 514 school children committed suicide in 2022, according to a government white paper that suggested media coverage of a celebrity’s death may have pushed up the figure.
The number was the highest for students 6 to 18 years old since the survey started in 1980, topping the previous record of 499 in 2020.
“We must address the issues facing children who committed suicide, such as bullying and relationships with teachers,” the welfare ministry said in its suicide-prevention white paper, which was approved by the Cabinet on Oct. 20.
The ministry’s report also highlighted the possible impact of the Werther effect, a term that refers to an increase in suicide rates following media reports about the suicide of a well-known person.
The white paper suggested that media coverage of the suicide of a TV celebrity in May 2022 may have led to a “copy-cat” effect over the following weeks.
The ministry called for responsible reporting by the media concerning suicides. It even warned some media outlets that had sent reporters and camera crews to the front of the dead celebrity’s house.
In its suicide-prevention guidelines, the World Health Organization urges the media to avoid using sensational language, providing detailed locations and describing the method used in their coverage of celebrity suicides.
According to the ministry’s white paper, the total number of suicides in Japan reached 21,881 in 2022, up 874, or 4.2 percent, from 2021, marking the first increase in two years.
The number of suicides among males rose for the first time in 13 years, while the figure for females surged for the third straight year.
The suicide rate per 100,000 people has been rising among most age groups since 2020, especially those in their 20s, 40s and 50s.
Of those who took their own lives, 11,775 people, or 53.8 percent of the total, were unemployed, compared with 8,576 people, or 39.2 percent, who held jobs.
The ministry said health problems were the leading cause of suicide, accounting for 12,774, or 45.1 percent, of all cases, while family issues were a contributing factor in 4,775 deaths, or 16.8 percent.
Financial distress played a role in 4,697, or 16.6 percent, of the suicides.
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