Suicides by women up in Japan for second year

The number of women who took their own lives rose by 42 to 7,068, the second straight year of increase. - Bloomberg

TOKYO, March 15 (Reuters): The number of women who died by suicide in Japan rose for a second straight year in 2021 although the overall number of people who took their own lives in the country edged down, police said on Tuesday.

Suicide has a long history in Japan as a way of avoiding shame or dishonour, and its suicide rate had long topped the Group of Seven nations, but a concerted national effort brought numbers down by roughly 40 per cent over 15 years - although they rose in 2020 due to stresses brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, the Health Ministry said.