MaltaStar: Suicides twice as high as fatal traffic accidents

http://maltastar.com/pages/r1/ms10dart.asp?a=13088

1. 12. 2010

28 persons were recorded as having committed suicide in the first ten months of 2010, exactly twice as many as died from fatal traffic accidents.

The figure is higher than recorded figures for the whole of 2007. There were 26 suicides in Malta in 2007, according to WHO statistics.

This probably still puts Malta towards the bottom of suicide rates among EU member states.

In 2006 MaltaMedia news reported that Malta had the third lowest suicide rate, according to Eurostat survey figures for 2001-2003.

Suicide was less prevalent in citizens living in Southern European than in other parts of Europe, the survey found.

However as was also pointed out, the Eurostat survey revealed that difficulties of investigation and cultural differences may affect the data for this cause of death.

In Catholic countries such as Malta, suicide is still seen as taboo and families have a tendency to hide evidence of suicide if they can.

There is a strong link between economic downturns and suicide rates, so the current economic climate might be one of the causes of a rise in suicides this year

Anecdotal evidence also suggests that minority groups such as homosexuals, who are not given enough support, also have a higher tendency to commit suicide.

According to an article by Victor Vella, in the Torca said “in recent years a number of gays have committed suicide.”