![]() The Norwegian media’s reluctance and even refusal to report suicides has long sparked criticism that its self-censorship merely perpetuates the lack of openness that has surrounded suicide for generations. The most awkward cases involve searches for missing persons: If he or she is eventually “found dead,” the media coverage that may well have been intense suddenly ceases. Journalists routinely report merely that the person “was found dead,” with no mention of the circumstances or cause of death. When other Norwegians well-known enough to warrant press coverage have committed suicide, it’s also been suppressed. Suicide is very much viewed as a private tragedy in Norway: When the son of former Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland committed suicide while she was still in office, the news was suppressed even though her officials duties had to be at least temporarily assumed by others in her government. The problem in Norway has long been the lack of openness around suicide, or to even report it in the mainstream media, allegedly for fear of inspiring more suicides. We must teach our children from the time they’re small how they can deal with difficult feelings.” She’ll be meeting with people affected by suicide, to “learn more” about who has chosen to kill themselves, and why.įuruseth said she wanted to gather people in her home “to hammer in the point that you (anyone affected by suicide or the thought of it) are not alone.” Her impromptu event was fully booked and even Prime Minister Erna Solberg dropped by: “The public sector has a responsibility (to help prevent suicide),” Solberg told NTB, “but we as fellow human beings also have a responsibility to be open, to meet and speak with people. She’s also started hosting a television series about suicide that premiered this week on TV Norge and Dplay. Else Kåss Furuseth, who lost her own mother and older brother to suicide, opened her home in Oslo’s Bislet district for what she called a “mini-festival” to address suicide with music, conversation, coffee and waffles. The post also expressed gratitude for a special event held on Monday by a Norwegian comedienne who’s among those who think suicide has been hushed up in Norway for far too long. “My mother chose to end her life when I was 12 years old, and at that time, NO ONE even talked about it,” wrote one Norwegian on social media this week. Thousands more attempted suicide, and calls are going out once again for more openness around a subject that’s been suppressed for years. No one can say for sure how many Norwegians commit suicide every year, but the official number in 2016 was 614. ![]() This week’s International Suicide Prevention Day brought the issue to the forefront once again, in a country where many argue that it’s been a taboo subject for far too long. Calls are rising for more openness and honesty about suicides in Norway, both in the media and the otherwise open public debate.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |