Ferdous Karim Ruhi (not her real name) is a 16-year-old girl who was recently admitted to a college in Dhaka. When her parents were in the office on Tuesday afternoon, she went live on Facebook and threatened to cut her wrists if a boy, who she mentioned by name, did not talk to her.
The boy informed Ruhi’s mother, who called the neighbours. When the neighbours went to check on the teenager, she had a normal conversation with them.
Ruhi later confessed to her mother that she had considered committing suicide on a live stream.
In the past few months, there have been several suicides that were broadcast on social media.
An 18-year-old girl committed suicide during a video call with her boyfriend in Dhaka’s Khilkhet area last September. In March this year, Jannatul Nawrin Esha, the 22-year-old daughter of the notorious Ershad Sikder, also reportedly committed suicide while on a video call.
The incidents are not limited to teenagers and young women. On February 2, a 58-year-old man also committed suicide live on social media.
Wishing for memorable deaths
Experts said live broadcasts of suicides pose a severe threat to society, as watching them may push those who are at risk of suicide over the edge.
Dhaka University department of women and gender studies Professor Tania Haque said: “It is not a secret that more and more people are committing suicide after leaving digital suicide notes through Facebook Live or other streaming platforms. They are interested in finding ways to be remembered even after their death.”
A study by ScienceDirect, titled “Suicide after Facebook posts–An unnoticed departure of life in Bangladesh,” evaluated suicide cases after Facebook posts or live-streams by victims in 2020. It found nine suicides that fit the criteria.
Of the nine victims, seven were male and two were female. They ranged in age from 18 to 32, with an average age of 22.
Five were students, and one each was a policeman, a former Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) leader, an unemployed person, and a small job holder. One took poison, one shot himself, and all others hanged themselves.
The most prevalent cause of such suicides were problems in the family or with partners.
Tansen Rose, founder of the Aanchal Foundation, called for measures to detect people who are at risk of suicide as quickly as possible, as minutes could make the difference between life and death.
Dangers of depression
Dr Md Tazul Islam, professor of psychiatry at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), said depression can eventually lead to suicide if it is left unchecked.
“Suicide is the final stage of depression. We need to be alert to it, especially if a person feels alone and cannot share his feelings with anyone, or if such individuals reduce their interactions with people and confine themselves in a box,” he said.
He stated that people who were at risk of suicide may get the motivation to take their lives if they see other people doing the same, and their main goal is to be remembered.
“Family and friends are the most important thing. If you do not notice emotional turmoil in a child or person, they should be taken to the doctor and be given support,” the professor added.
