[서화목] the suicide rate has soared in Japan recently, emerging as a social problem.

Amid the prolonged novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19), the suicide rate has soared in Japan recently, emerging as a social problem.

According to Japanese government statistics reported by CNN on the 30th (local time), 2,153 people killed themselves in October this year alone, the highest monthly suicide since May 2015. The figure is ahead of 2,087 cases of Covid-19 deaths as of the 27th.

CNN attributed the recent rise in Japan's suicide rate to the depression caused by unemployment and childcare caused by Corona 19.

Japan announces its monthly suicide rate, and few developed countries disclose it every time. The U.S. has not released statistical data since 2018. As such, Japan's data is expected to be a reference to which group's mental health is vulnerable in a pandemic (fandemic) situation.

Michiko Ueda, a professor at Waseda University, predicted, "Considering that Japan's suicide rate has increased despite the relatively small impact of Covid-19, other countries with severe damage to Covid-19 will see a much higher suicide rate than Japan."

Japan is the second-largest country in the Western Pacific after South Korea, but the suicide rate has been falling below 20,000 a year in the past decade.

However, it started to rebound after the Covid-19 Pandemic, and the growth is particularly focused on women. Women's suicide rates rose 83 percent in October compared to October last year, and men's suicide rates rose 22 percent during the same period.

CNN attributed the increase to the increase in psychological pain of female part-time workers in the service sector, which has a large proportion of female part-time workers such as hotels and restaurants, as the layoffs occurred to Covid-19.

"There are a lot of people around me who have lost their jobs," said Eriko Kobayashi, who decided to commit suicide four times due to difficulties in life. "Japanese society ignores women and cuts off those who are most vulnerable to emergencies."

More and more women are complaining of mental pain not only in their daily lives but also in their jobs. This is because women should take over childcare for children who returned from daycare centers or schools and care more about their children's health with Corona 19.

Koki Ozora (21), who runs a 24-hour mental health hotline called "Anata No Ibasho (place for you)," said most of the more than 200 calls a day on average are women.

"Most of the callers had to raise their children, but they lost their jobs and had no money and tried to kill themselves," Ojora. More and more women are reported being sexually assaulted by their biological father or beaten by their husbands."

He analyzed that the reason why there are so many phone calls about this is that he cannot go to a "place to run away" like school or his friend's house.

"It is urgent to eliminate prejudice against mental illness in Japan," Ojora said. "The government should seek efforts to increase its livelihood support policy and reduce the suicide rate."