Suicide crisis - Are we really serious about suicide?

WHEN Ireland’s deadly dance with the spectre of suicide was first recognised officially as a ‘crisis’, a 10-year campaign was launched in a fanfare of publicity to prove the Government was serious about tackling an emergency that accounted for more lives than road fatalities.

That was four years ago. Today, the political reality is that Government support remains negligible when measured against the sheer scale of a crisis which continues to reap a grim toll among the most vulnerable people in Irish society.

Any doubts about the Coalition’s lack of urgency in tackling the Republic’s inordinately high suicide rate were dispelled earlier this month when Taoiseach Bertie Ahern had to apologise for making a reference to suicide in a speech which misfired badly at the ICTU conference in Donegal.

In his regrettable off-the-cuff remark, Mr Ahern said he did not know how people who engaged in moaning about the economy did not “commit suicide”. That the country’s leading politician should come out with so thoughtless an aside was perceived by many as a reminder of the Government’s lack of serious intent towards addressing the suicide crisis.

Much to his credit, however, the Taoiseach had the decency to reiterate his apology on Thursday when he met members of the Action On Suicide Alliance. They left him in no doubt about the appalling scale of the difficulties confronting those who continue to work tirelessly at the coal face of this problem.

In particular, the lack of adequate financial resources remains a major obstacle to progress in the vital areas of research and remedial action.

In a knee-jerk reaction typical of politicians, Mr Ahern has asked the alliance to prepare a policy document by September, including a list of key recommendations on how to address the high rate of suicide here. Let’s hope his request was more than a convenient ploy to long-finger Government action on this grave issue.

Unsurprisingly, the question now being asked is whether the alliance document will be added to the mountain of reports and recommendations already gathering dust on the groaning shelves of this administration.

Spelling out the stark realities of the suicide scenario, alliance chairman John Saunders, strongly argues the need for a co-ordinated approach between state services, voluntary bodies and private enterprise. Representing 11 groups, the alliance contends the problem of suicide is so great that the Taoiseach’s office should be directly involved in any effort to address the continuing situation.

Ironically, the Taoiseach’s obvious embarrassment over the ICTU gaffe may yet redound to the benefit of those struggling to cope with a problem that affects every community and impacts, directly or indirectly, on virtually every family in Ireland.

A novel campaign has been launched to encourage young people to talk about difficulties in their personal lives. Sending out the message that suicide is not the answer, it targets those between 15 and 25, an age group where suicide accounts for almost a third of all deaths, ranking Ireland as the fifth highest suicide rate in Europe.

Against this depressing backdrop, the challenge confronting the Taoiseach is to convince a jaundiced public that this Government is really serious about tackling this vexed issue.

Once he receives the alliance priority list, he should immediately put in place whatever resources are needed to tackle the suicide crisis in a more realistic and meaningful manner than we have seen up to now.

With lives at risk, what people want is action on suicide — not empty political promises.