WINDHOEK – Statistics from the Ministry of Health and Social Services indicate that between September 01 2013 and September 10 2014 a total of 477 people committed suicide throughout the country.
During that period, Oshana recorded 84 suicides, Khomas 76, Ohangwena 60, Erongo 49, Omusati 48, Otjozondjupa 39, Oshikoto 31, Omaheke 23, Hardap 16, //Karas 15 and Kunene 12.
Kavango East, Kavango West and the Zambei regions were on par with Kunene as each of them reported 12 case during that period.
More alarmingly the statistics further indicate that 1 305 people attempted to take their lives between April 1 last year and March 31 this year.
Khomas Region topped the list with 306 attempted suicides followed by Erongo with 246 recorded cases. The Omaheke Region recorded three cases while Omusati recorded the second lowest attempted suicide cases with 37 people attempting to end their lives.
The chief social worker in the Ministry of Health and Social Services, Betsy du Plessis, told New Era the statistics may not necessarily be a true reflection of what is happening on the ground because some cases are not recorded more particularly the attempted suicides.
Du Plessis noted suicide is a major concern in Namibia. “It’s definitely a problem. It’s a very big problem and we are very much concerned,” said Du Plessis.
Many people who commit suicide do not leave any notes, she stated. “We cannot really say what are the causes (for suicide). But with young people it’s mostly broken relationships and in adults it’s also broken relationships such as divorce.”
The head of public relations of the Namibian Police Force, Deputy Commissioner Edwin Kanguatjivi also confirmed that in most suicide cases “there was no note left behind”.
However, he noted that some people commit suicide for health reasons.
Kanguatjivi explained that some people have committed suicide when they learnt of their HIV-positive status and did not receive counselling to cope with their condition.
Broken relationships, according to Kanguatjivi, is a contributing factor to why people commit suicide while depression is another.
“Depression is caused by various factors. So, there are varying reasons why people commit suicide,” said Kanguatjivi.
Du Plessis said many depressed people do not seek help because of myths and stigma related to such a health condition. She stressed that mental stigma contributes greatly towards suicide.
“You find people making derogatory comments in the presence of people who want to seek help for their mental illnesses, by using words such as groen dakkies, mal kamp (derogatory terms for psychiatric institutions). We have a lot of work to do to change the mindsets of people not to be judgemental when others seek help,” she said.
A Windhoek based clinical psychologist, Joab Mudzanapabwe, told New Era people are likely to commit suicide because of chronic ailments such as cancer and stigma related to HIV/AIDS.
People also commit suicide because of hopelessness, he added.
“We are really losing a lot of people through suicide. Some people’s internal characteristics are not resilient to the pressures of life and that leads to suicide,” said Mudzanapabwe.
He added that people with strong family support are most likely to escape attempting or committing suicide.
Kanguatjivi and Mudzanapabwe said people who live in major cities and towns are more likely to commit suicide because of the pressures that come with living in cities, such as municipal bills.