Five calls a day from suicide candidates!

Latest statistics and epidemiological studies show a significant increase in suicide rates in Greece, which have reached 40% due to the economic crisis and the moneylender networks.

The pressure from the dire economic situation that many professionals across the country are facing, but also the rapid increase in unemployment, are leading many Greeks to an impasse, something which is confirmed by the dramatic increase in suicides.

Scientists identify the economic crisis as the cause of the surge in suicides last year, specifically for the unprecedented levels for this country.

There has been an increase of 17% for suicides in Greece between 2007-2009, according to a survey of American and British scientists in ten European Union countries.

The researchers studied data from WHO, for ages under 65, in an attempt to capture the impact of the crisis in the Eurozone.

Our country has the worst rate, while the only country where suicides have decreased is Austria (-5%). Even Ireland has a lower rate than Greece, amounting to 13%.

This is an increase of more than 25%, with half the cases of suicides related to unemployment, debt and poverty. Specifically, in 2007 238 suicides were recorded, the corresponding number a year later being 366 and 391 in 2009, while the number reached 500 in 2010. This year’s statistical evidence of the first quarter speaks of 150 suicides, which corresponds to 2 each day

A few days ago, a fifty-year-old from Nicaea was found hanging in his own house. His suicide note explained that he did this because he couldn't bear life any longer due his financial problems and unemployment.

Last night, a 46-year-old man was found hanging in Ptolemaida. His suicide note blamed financial problems.

The day before yesterday, a 55-year-old killed himself with a shotgun in Boha. A 52-year-old in Elassona drove his car into an artificial lake for water collection. On July 4th, an 80-year-old commited suicide in Rymnio, Kozani.

On the afternoon of June 29th, in Thessaloniki, Leonidas Mariolas, aged 45, committed suicide by jumping off his balcony. On the 21st of June, a 47-year-old farmer in Lasithi, Crete also killed himself. On the 13th of June, another suicide took place in Aigio. The list is long and usually lost in the back pages of the daily police report.

Telephone support line 1018, which is funded by the Ministry of Health, receives daily calls from people who have either made a suicide attempt or are thinking of committing suicide, or even worry about someone close to them. “It is clear from these figures that most of the suicide candidates are facing debts, unemployment and serious economic problems. We have been taking 4-5 calls per day this year, half of which come from people who have problems, professionally and economically”, said the spokeswoman of the “Scale” NGO.