The number of people who committed suicide in Japan between January and June stood at 14,154, down 11.7 percent from a year earlier, the National Police Agency said Monday in a preliminary report.
The figure for the January-June period fell below 15,000 for the first time since 2008, when the agency started to release monthly data. If the trend continues, the number of suicides in the whole year through December could fall below 30,000 for the first time in 15 years.
A Cabinet Office official responsible for suicide prevention said the decline in the number of suicides is likely attributable to "measures such as the enhancement of consultation services" gradually paying off.
"But our goal is not to push the number below 30,000. We hope to decrease the number of people who commit suicide as much as possible," the official said.
Males accounted for 9,920 and women 4,234 of the total.
Source: Mainichi
Hope the number continues to decrease :3
