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SUICIDE
HIGH RATE OF SUICIDE AMONG INDOGUYNAESE IN BLACK BUSH POLDER
11/7/2014

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High Rate of Suicide Among Indo Guyanese in Black Bush Polder

Twelve years ago Dr. Bernadette Theodore-Gandi a PAHO representative said the high
incidence of suicide in Guyana reflects a chronic state of unhappiness and poor mental health
that requires urgent action. Today the problem is still prevalent with Pan American Health
Organization reporting that Guyana has the highest rate of suicide in the world with figures of
26.2 per every 10,000 deaths are caused by suicide. What is even more concerning here in
Guyana is the high rate of suicide among Indo-Guyanese. This was the finding of a study The
Shadow of Death conducted by Dr. Kenrick Danns which revealed that 3 out of 4 suicide
deaths are committed by East Indians. A suicide cluster was also indentified by him in Black
Bush Polder, a farming community of the East Berbice-Corentyne Region (No.6) which has a
population of about 6000 persons and stretches 22 miles. 52 per cent of all Guyanese suicides
occur in that Region. Dr. Dann concluded that the concentration of deaths by suicide in limited
geographical areas and among limited demographic clusters in Guyanas countryside suggests
the element of emulation or copycat suicides known as the Werther effecti. This Theory was
later supported by another research conducted by Micheal Fallahay, a Peace Corps Volunteer
who worked along with the Mibicuri Community Developers. He also suggested that persons of
East Indian descent in Guyana, especially in farming areas, were more likely to attempt suicide.
The survey he carried out showed that 20 percent of the people thought about suicide at some
point in their lives. Of these persons, 19 percent said they thought about suicide only once; 43
per cent, rarely; 14 per cent, a long time ago; and 24 per cent, when they were overwhelmed. He
went on to say that suicide is so prevalent in Black Bush Polder that 95 per cent of residents have
family members who died of suicide.
Although suicide is preventable the statistics reflect lack of effective strategies and structures by
the government in place to deal with the problem especially within the Black Bush Polder
Community. It is with this in mind that the high suicide rates within this area is undertaken to
determine what measures can be put in place to curb this endemic.

Copycat effect is also known as the imitation or the contagion effect and it deals with the power of the mass
communication and culture to create an epidemic of similar behaviors. It is the dirty little secret of the media.

Bibliography
Guyana Times . High suicide rate in region 6 worries Authorities. 14 September 2012. Document. 1
November 2014.
Kaieteur News. Werther effect in juvenile suicide in Guyana. 8 June 2014. Document. 7 Novenber 2104.
Loren Coleman, M.S.W. Copy Cat Effect. New York: PARAVIEW, 2004. Book.