Man commits suicide in front of son

A 29-year-old Pumula South man committed suicide by hanging himself from a roof truss in front of his three-year-old son, police have said. Neighbours were awakened by the screaming boy who was found standing next to the hanging body on Tuesday.

The late Ashday Munikwa was with his son as his wife was in Woodville where she works. He did not leave a suicide note and according to police, he had not engaged in any dispute with the wife or family members which could have promoted him to take his life.

Bulawayo police provincial spokesperson Inspector Abednico Ncube confirmed the incident yesterday and called on residents to learn the art of opening up whenever they face challenges.

He said members of the public should speak out even to strangers when in distress to avoid the unnecessary loss of life through suicide which is on the rise countrywide.

"On the 29th of December at round 7AM, the informant was alerted by the deceased's son who is three years old who was crying from the house. The informant went to the house and saw the deceased hanging from the roof truss in his bedroom," said Insp Ncube.

Police were notified and they attended the scene and have ruled out foul play. The body was taken to the United Bulawayo Hospitals mortuary awaiting post mortem.

Insp Ncube said people were committing suicide because they were not opening up to relatives, friends or community leaders on their problems.

"It is important to find someone they can confide in which could be a friend, church mate or even the police as we offer counselling services at every police station," he said.

Ins Ncube said police were worried about the increasing number of suicide cases in Bulawayo. Zimbabwe has the 13th highest suicide rate in the world amid reports that cases have been on the rise making suicide the 14th leading cause of death in the country.

According to a mental wellness organisation - Create Zim, in the last five years, more men have resorted to suicide compared to women. Defined as the act of intentionally causing one's own death by ingesting pesticide, hanging or using firearms, suicide is a result of mental disorders including depression, psychosis and substance use disorder.

Some of the causes include feelings of hopelessness for better outcomes.

Medical experts say serious depression can be effectively controlled with modern drugs and other medical techniques, but it is necessary that those who are drifting into suicidal depression are identified and referred to competent medical practitioners or psychiatry specialists as early as possible.