Suicide spirals in dry outback

THE prolonged drought has led to a rate of rural suicide in Australia that is among the highest in the world.

“Every day I look outside and I say to myself: ‘I get so sick to death of blue sky’,” wrote farmer Mick in a recent book, Tough Times, in which 10 country men talk about their fight with depression and thoughts of suicide. “The strain is just so constant and long and it’s like someone grabbing at me by the throat and slowly choking you a bit more each day.”

A total of 2,213 Australians committed suicide in 2003, the latest available statistics. The vast majority were men.