Nearly 900 people have attempted to commit suicide on Seoul's Han River bridges over the past five years, a report said Monday, testifying to the realities in a country with one of the world's highest suicide rates.
A total of 875 people jumped off one of the river's 24 major bridges in Seoul in suicide attempts from 2008 to August this year, the Seoul Metropolitan Government said in a report submitted to Rep. Kang Ki-youn of the ruling Saenuri Party.
Of them, 408 people died, it noted.
Mapo Bridge, which connects the financial district of Yeouido to Mapo, central Seoul, turned out to be the most favored place for suicide attempts, with 85 people, or 9.7 percent, jumping from the bridge.
"The government needs to set up surveillance cameras on every bridge to increase regular monitoring and conduct patrols more often," lawmaker Kang said. "Effective measures are urgent to increase the rate of rescue for those who try to commit suicide."
Korea is notorious for its high suicide rate, as an average of 33.5 people per 100,000 took their own lives in 2010, which came in 2.6 times higher than the average for countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, according to government data. (Yonhap)