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Sun, May 28, 2023 | 14:40
Korea makes news abroad with 40 suicides a day
BBC "한국, 부유해졌지만 과거보다 불행 ... 매일 40명씩 자살"
Posted : 2011-11-09 15:47
Updated : 2011-11-09 15:47
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By Kim Do-yeun

In an article published on its website Tuesday, the BBC threw the spotlight on South Korea’s 40 daily suicides, reporting on what is perhaps one of the biggest social problems that plague the country.

“South Korea is now the world's 12th largest economy. … And yet people here seem less happy than during the years of hardship after the Korean War(1950-53),” the article said.

The Korean government revealed that the current suicide rate is five times higher than that of the previous generation, which saw the country through the turmoil of war and economic hardship.

The issue has only recently been officially recognized by the government, and the sources in BBC’s article suggested that proper prevention and social support were late in coming. They depicted a society that tends to blame victims of depression for their own misfortunes.

Dr. Hong Kang-ee, a psychologist, pointed to the severe pressures that Koreans face every day from a very early age, saying that parents have increasingly drilled the importance of money and success into their children’s heads over the past 40 years. Those who don’t “make the cut” are often shunned by their own parents.

While Korean parents have recently braved the taboo of consulting psychologists, Dr. Hong said that they now come to her for the wrong reasons: They want their children to work harder and want them to be treated for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

The government has begun to invest in initiatives to raise awareness and buckle down the increasing suicide rate, but the issue is seen as a “deep-rooted” problem that is not readily tractable.

BBC "한국, 부유해졌지만 과거보다 불행 ... 매일 40명씩 자살"
"지난 40년간 성공에 매몰돼 전통적 가치 잃어" 한국은 과거 그 어느 때보다 부유해졌지만 매일 40명 이상이 스스로 목숨을 끊을 정도로 자살이 심각한 사회 문제가 됐다고 영국 BBC 방송 인터넷판이 8일 보도했다. 방송은 서울 남산 옛 안기부 터에 자리 잡은 자살 예방 콜센터의 모습을 소개하며 한국에서 자살 시도가 계속 증가하는 추세라는 상담원들의 말을 전했다. 세계 12위 경제 대국인 한국에서 자살률이 치솟는 이유는 사회가 지난 40년간 성공이라는 단 하나의 목표에 매달려 전통적 가치를 모두 저버렸기 때문이라고 전문가들은 설명했다. 홍 강의 서울대 교수(소아정신과)는 "어렸을 때부터 돈과 성공의 중요성을 강조하는 부모 밑에서 자라다 보니 좋은 성적, 좋은 대학, 좋은 직장을 얻지 못하면 실패했다고 느끼게 되고, 부모 역시 '너는 내 자식이 아니다'는 식으로 행동한다"고 지적했다. 방송은 또 지금까지 스무 번 넘게 자살을 시도했다는 21세 환자의 사례를 통해 한국사회가 그간 자살의 원인을 개인의 약한 의지 탓으로 돌리다가 비교적 최근에야 상담과 치료가 일반화됐다고 밝혔다. 최근 정신과에 대한 사회적 금기가 약화돼 자녀들에게 정신과 치료를 받게 하는 부모가 늘었지만, 이 또한 주의력결핍과잉행동장애(ADHD) 약물을 처방받아 더 좋은 성적을 받게 하려는 목적이 대부분이라고 홍 교수는 말했다. BBC는 자살 예방 운동가들의 말을 인용, 국회와 정부도 최근 자살 문제의 심각성을 깨닫고 예산을 본격 투입하기 시작했으나 고속 성장을 이뤄낸 한국사회에 자살은 뿌리깊은 문제여서 단기간에 해결하기는 어려울 것으로 보인다고 전했다.
 
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