ICC Note:
Suicide has become so widespread in Iran that some state officials are calling it an epidemic. Sadly, many of those who commit suicide are youth or women. Iran’s Islamic regime has created a harsh environment where happiness is equated with promiscuity, a situation driving the society towards depression. Indeed, a theme common of many conversion stories of Iranian Christians is how they found Christ at a time of their lives when their depression was at its lowest point and they were contemplating suicide. While their lives have been changed, so many others have never had the chance to hear the Gospel because of the regime’s harsh violations of religious freedom.
11/14/2017 Iran (NCRI News) – A brief look at suicide statistics reflected in Iranian regime’s media and the comments made by state officials on the causes of suicide in recent months, especially among women and youth, reveals that the scourge is turning into a national disaster and a real crisis.
Self-immolation and attempting suicide by women, men, and youth overwhelmed by poverty, oppression, discrimination, and inequality, and pushed to express their protest about the current conditions in the most tragic and painful way.
The disaster has become so widespread that some state officials refer to it as an epidemic.
According to state media, suicide attempt among women has risen 66 percent over the past five years. The figure is 71 percent among men over the same period. The figures also show that suicide among women has increased over the past decade.
Meanwhile, a regime’s expert believes that increased number of suicide attempts in public among youth, teens, and women is because they look at it as a way to protest and cry out against the current situation, a situation that drives the society towards depression. He also acknowledges that there are a lot of contradictions in society, leading to a social identity crisis.
Amir-Mahmoud Harirchi also points to restrictions regime applies to women, acknowledging that “unfortunately our women and girls are not allowed to enter stadiums or ride a bike. We’re constantly creating more restrictions for them. That’s despite the fact that women today are aware of their rights and know that they (should) have equal rights to men. Why don’t we allow families to enter stadiums?”
Regarding the restrictions applied to women, Harirchi says “unfortunately we’ve created conditions that have caused girls to be more vulnerable. Rules, regulations, and social norms have all hurt young people. Happiness is not recognized in our society, which is even more true with regard to girls. Unfortunately, we equate happiness to promiscuity.”
Pointing to increase in suicide rate among women, he says “suicide is turning feminine.” (State-run ILNA news agency, October 27, 2017)
Also in this regard, another state expert ‘Nemat Ahmadi’ points to the causes of increase in suicide cases among youth and students, saying “inefficient administrative system, feeling hopeless about future, disproportion between income and expenditures, depression, and unemployment are the main reasons why students attempt suicide.” (State-run Ana news agency, October 27, 2017)
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