Selbstmordepidemie im Iran

Aus Verzweiflung und Hoffnungslosigkeit bringen sich immer mehr Iranerinnen und Iraner um. Schon ist von einer Selbstmord-Epidemie die Rede.

Geht es so weiter, wird der Iran bald nicht nur zu den Ländern mit dem meisten Drogenabhängigen weltweit zählen sondern auch eine der höchsten Suizidraten haben. Das sagt viel darüber aus, in welcher Verfassung die Menschen im Land sind:

A suicide epidemic has swept across the provinces of Iran in recent months, with around 120,000 suicide attempts reported in 2023, prompting a call for action from mental health specialists and civil society actors.

Iran’s suicide rate has increased from five to seven per each 100,000 people over the past ten years, according to official statistics from authorities.

A suicide note left by 12-year-old Yasna from Iran’s southwestern city of Yasuj sent shockwaves through Iranian social media channels and left her family and loved ones in a state of utter despair. Yasna is survived by her younger sister Yakta. The two had begun living with their uncle’s family after their parents separated a few years back and could not agree on the custody of the children.

“Dear aunt-in-law. I will miss you. I am fed up with life. Yakta, I leave you our phone as a memory. Aunt-in-law, take care of Yakta, I leave her in your care. Goodbye,” read the letter from young Yasna, which she gave to one of her friends to hand to her family in case of her death.

Yasna took her own life through an intentional drugs overdose in early January.

Hassan Mousavi Chalak, head of Iran's Social Workers Association, said that the young girl’s suicide should be investigated, partly blaming the lack of mental health care in Iranian schools for the tragic death.

“Now the main question here is: How many schools have social workers? The answer is that no school has a support unit. In many cases, the social worker can receive signs and identify high-risk people by communicating with the person or family and the environment,” Mousavi Chalak told Etemad, a reformist newspaper calling for social freedoms in Iran.

High suicide rates among teens have also been reported in Iran’s western Kurdish region (Rojhelat) since the start of the year.