Nine to go! (suicide party cars)

[Taro Toporific]

How did they get 7 people into this Japanese "car"?

Four men, three woman found dead in car in Saitama
Japan Today, Oct 12
SAITAMA -- Four men and three women, believed to be in their teens and 20s, were found dead Tuesday morning in a car parked in a parking lot in the town of Minano, Saitama...

[Taro Toporific]

9 bodies found in cars in 2 group suicides near Tokyo; police investigating
Oct 11 - TOKYO (AP) -- Seven young men and women were found dead in a car parked at an isolated mountainside lot near Tokyo early Tuesday in an apparent group suicide, police said. Minutes later, the bodies of two more women who had apparently fulfilled a separate suicide pact were found.

[Marked Trail]

Mass suicide with strangers...no there's a concept.

"The number of Japanese who committed suicide last year exceeded 32,000 to mark the record high. Police did not have figures for internet group suicides."

[dimwit]

[b] 9 bodies found in cars in 2 group suicides near Tokyo]Oct 11 - TOKYO (AP) -- Seven young men and women were found dead in a car parked at an isolated mountainside lot near Tokyo early Tuesday in an apparent group suicide, police said. Minutes later, the bodies of two more women who had apparently fulfilled a separate suicide pact were found.

It is nice to see people being good and economical with the carbon monoxide.

[Taro Toporific]

It is nice to see people being good and economical with the carbon monoxide.

Gee, "I've got the car and the briquettes ready" sounds like a picnic to me.

...Japanese "suicide applicant" sites aimed at people thinking of taking their lives are common. They contain information from around Japan on methods of committing suicide and places to do it. When several people who want to commit suicide appear, they reportedly choose a time and place, and decide on the members who will take part.
The comments people write include statements and questions like "Are there any women who would like to help and die with me?" "I want to know a sure way of dying peacefully," and "I've got the car and the briquettes ready."
The four people who committed suicide together in September reportedly exchanged messages on the Internet saying they were looking for others to die with them. (Mainichi Shimbun, Japan, Oct. 12, 2004)

[kurohinge1]

9 bodies found in cars in 2 group suicides near Tokyo]
It is nice to see people being good and economical with the carbon monoxide.

Remind me not to carpool next time I'm there.

[Watcher]

This made CNN on the news ticker.

[Mulboyne]

Four males and three females were found dead Tuesday morning inside a station wagon in a mountain parking lot in Minano, Saitama Prefecture...Three weeks ago, four youths committed suicide by sealing themselves in a vehicle with a charcoal burner about 5 km from the parking lot in Minano.

Ian Fleming's James Bond novel "You Only Live Twice" was published in 1964 but it was pretty accurate on suicide in Japan. [DONT READ ON IF YOU WANT TO READ THE BOOK}
Unlike the film, in the book, a foreign botanist in Japan applies for licences to set import flora and fauna to set up a private park. He proceeds to import every known poisonous plant and killer snakes and turns it into a "Garden of Death". The embarrassment for the authorities is that it becomes a magnet for suicides and large numbers head to the park to die.

[Taro Toporific]

This made CNN on the news ticker.

It was the fourth story on the BBC Radio News this morning.

[Mulboyne]

MDN: Group suicide victim tried to kill self a week earlier

One of the victims in a group suicide pact that left seven young people dead from carbon monoxide poisoning tried to commit suicide in the same way only a week earlier, police investigators have found.

The victim, a 34-year-old woman from Tokyo's Bunkyo-ku, unsuccessfully tried to kill herself on Oct. 5 with three other people by burning briquettes in a tent in the Tokyo suburb of Okutama to release toxic carbon monoxide gas, police said.

In a separate incident, a 21-year-old woman from Tokyo's Bunkyo-ku and a 27-year-old woman from Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, were found dead in Yokosuka at about the same time on Tuesday...Investigators said the 21-year-old victim in that incident was one of the three people with whom the 34-year-old Bunkyo-ku woman had unsuccessfully tried to commit suicide with on Oct. 5.

Police said they were considering sending documents to prosecutors, posthumously accusing one of the two women in the Yokosuka incident of promoting suicide. They said they were investigating which of the two women, who police believe became acquainted through a suicide-related Web site, had asked the other to die.

[Taro Toporific]

Here's some good background information....

Suicide chatrooms symptom of Japanese epidemic
By Deborah Cameron, The Sydney Morning Herald Correspondent in Tokyo
October 14, 2004
With nine dead this week in suicide pacts, queues continued to form yesterday on Japanese internet bulletin boards set up to match people who share a fatal intent. "If you are considering suicide as I am, talk," a high school boy wrote yesterday on one site that contained 79 messages....

...About 75 per cent of [suicide] victims were men. The deaths often involve older people, particularly men who have been laid off from work, and in those cases financial ruin is frequently blamed. Unusually, Japan's life insurance companies pay out in cases of suicide which, when a family business or home is in jeopardy because of debts, allows a man to restore his reputation by sacrificing his life. The largest insurer, the Postal Life Insurance Service of Japan, said that it covered the deaths of 9334 people who committed suicide in 2002.

Suicide is seen as a legitimate and dignified solution to life's woes. Culturally it can be traced back to ancient samurai history, when death was seen as preferable to defeat. And in times of business failure, personal disgrace, debt, illness, school stress or relationship breakdown, large numbers of people opt for it.

This year the chairman of a company and his wife killed themselves after authorities blamed their chicken farm and egg distribution plant for an outbreak of bird flu.

National statistics record that household financial problems and illness were the reasons most often stated when a suicide note was left.

Though it is a problem of crisis proportions and a handful of psychiatrists have called for action, the Government has shown virtually no interest in suicide research or prevention, while the wider issue of depression is barely acknowledged as a health issue.

[Captain Japan]

...About 75 per cent of [suicide] victims were men. The deaths often involve older people, particularly men who have been laid off from work, and in those cases financial ruin is frequently blamed. Unusually, Japan's life insurance companies pay out in cases of suicide which, when a family business or home is in jeopardy because of debts, allows a man to restore his reputation by sacrificing his life. The largest insurer, the Postal Life Insurance Service of Japan, said that it covered the deaths of 9334 people who committed suicide in 2002.

I had a Japan stat book from 2001 or so. It had a breakdown of the reason for the suicides. It's surprising to see that the majority are people in the northern parts of Japan. And by far (over 2/3) of the victims were determined to have killed themselves over loneliness/depression etc. So in other words it is old, cold people who are primarily offing themselves. Less than 20% killed themselves over something to do with money. I'll see if I can find that book and get the exact figures.

Also here's something else (sort of related) from October 13...

Suicide jumper causes delays on Tokyo's Chuo Line
Mainichi

A man jumped into an oncoming train on the JR Chuo Line in western Tokyo Wednesday, forcing the railway operator to suspend services on the line for over 20 minutes and inconveniencing about 15,000 commuters, police said.
At around 7:30 a.m., a man passed through a closed gate at a crossing on the JR Chuo Line between Hachioji and Nishi-Hachioji Station in the western Tokyo city of Hachioji, and jumped into an oncoming express train bound for Takao, police said.

I've read in a number of places where Tokyo averages a death a day where someone jumps in front of a train. Yet such stories make the news (in the Yomiuri, Mainichi, or Japan Times) only every few months or so. In reading this story it doesn't seem terribly unique. Pretty standard, I'd say. So why report this kind of thing at all? Slow news day? If you just stuck with these reports you'd think that people were jumping in front of trains only once every few months; not every day. Any ideas?

[Mulboyne]

I had a Japan stat book from 2001 or so. It had a breakdown of the reason for the suicides. It's surprising to see that the majority are people in the northern parts of Japan. And by far (over 2/3) of the victims were determined to have killed themselves over loneliness/depression etc.

Well that tallies with the info I saw the other day (this thread)

Hokkaido continues to lead the country with the largest rate of cigarette consumption. Male smoking was 54.8% and female smoking 27.5% of the population, respectively. Hokkaido's lead was followed by the Tohoku region (6 prefectures in northeastern Japan) where male smoking was 53.6% and female smoking was 13.9% of the population, respectively.

Over twice as many women smoke in Hokkaido than the next highest ranked area? Some serious stress up north.

No idea on the train suicide numbers. But, assuming it is as high as one a day, how would you go about reporting it? Thinking about the lack of coverage of those two guys at the Keio Plaza, you have to wonder if the media tries not to publicize or intrude on suicides for fear of sparking copycats. Perhaps they only get reported when (a) someone famous commits suicide (b) the circumstances are exceptional (c) the suicide directly affects a large number of people - so a major Chuo line stoppage makes it.

[Mulboyne]

[Taro Toporific]

[dimwit]

I had a Japan stat book from 2001 or so. It had a breakdown of the reason for the suicides. It's surprising to see that the majority are people in the northern parts of Japan. And by far (over 2/3) of the victims were determined to have killed themselves over loneliness/depression etc. So in other words it is old, cold people who are primarily offing themselves. Less than 20% killed themselves over something to do with money. I'll see if I can find that book and get the exact figures.

It isn't that surprising, as according to UN statistics the top 10 suicide countries are Lithuania, Russia, Belarus, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Slovenia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Finland, which are all basically cold dark northern countries.

Taro, I hope your not feeling depressed.

[Captain Japan]

It isn't that surprising, as according to UN statistics the top 10 suicide countries are Lithuania, Russia, Belarus, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Slovenia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Finland, which are all basically cold dark northern countries.

Taro, I hope your not feeling depressed.

I guess my point was that while story after story comes out discussing how more and more people are killing themselves because of what is seen as a lousy economy the majority - by far - are doing themselves in for other reasons. But I suppose that story isn't as interesting...

[Taro Toporific]

Taro, I hope your not feeling depressed.

Been there.
Done that.
Have the death certificate.




Via GettyImages.com / MINANO, JAPAN - OCTOBER 14 A car passes the parking spot where four men and three women were found dead in a car October 14, 2004 in Minano town, Saitama Prefectuer, Japan. The sign directs visitors to, "Minoyama Park." [On the top is shown the] Japanese web site about suicide [as] seen on a computer laptop near the area ....

[Captain Japan]

(c) the suicide directly affects a large number of people - so a major Chuo line stoppage makes it.

This was the only reason I could think of. Though offhand I don't know what an extraordinary number of "inconvenienced" people might be.

[Captain Japan]

The BBC has posted a few comments from readers on these suicides:
Why are suicide pacts on the rise in Japan?
A sampling...

Can we get a sense of perspective please. I am a British guy living in Japan and am surrounded by perfectly happy, pretty well off friends and colleagues. Japan does not have the highest suicide rates in the world (I believe that distinction belongs to Hungary or Finland but don't quote me). But, throw in preconceptions about harakiri and kamikazes and all of a sudden you have a major media issue! Suicide a "respected part" of Japanese culture. Nonsense! Tell that to the grieving relatives. Don't single out Japan or start making prejudicial comments about the society just because 9 people have chosen not to die alone. What about the remaining 126 million?
Philip Seaton, Sapporo, Japan

Japanese culture is unique. I've travelled in many places around the world, and I've never seen such a respectful society as Japan is. I have never felt that safe in a city. The crime rate is incredibly low (beside Yakusa's activities). Japan has a special way to work as a society; everybody must behave and be respectful of others. On the other hand, keeping all that frustration for yourself, combined with the stress to succeed (going to the best school, working for a big firm), will definitely be too much for some people who can't cope with pressure. Japan is a society that works as a whole, very low crime rate, but high pressure to succeed. This will unfortunately have a bad side at some point and that is why I think suicide is on the increase.

Suicide is the outcome of living in a modern world that makes everyone believe that material wealth is necessary, as the emotional, spiritual and social needs of every human being are totally lost.
Esra Karatash Alpay, Istanbul, Turkey

[Mulboyne]

Three more dead in Hokkaido. A young couple and their two-year old son.

Kyodo Japanese link
Kyodo English link (story being posted): Couple, child found dead in parked car in Hokkaido

[DrP]

I've often said that the Japanese manage any conflict resolution according to 3 incremental steps:

Step 1: Denial -- Practice of tatemae, stoneface, ignorance or blame it on your co-worker. Anyone who has lived and worked here more than a day can see this in action continuously.

Step 2: Apology -- When you do get caught with your hand in the cookie jar all it usually takes is a formal apology to right all sins. Hey what's the first thing you need to do when you ship something from overseas without the 'unaccompanied luggage' form? Write a letter of apology! Murder? No problem, a letter of apology to your victim's family and your likely to get off with just a couple years in the slammer.

Step 3: Suicide -- Too stupid for the denial tricks or proud for apology? Take the fast way out!

I've encountered this over and over again. From personal relationships with Japanese to business and official government transactions. Luckily I've not had to directly experience (except waiting for JR to muck up a salaryman or 2) Step 3, but nevertheless it's a drag. Maybe I'll go fire up the BBQ and sit on my bike .... hmmm anyone for group suicide by moped? If I can just seal the tarp somehow -- wait there's that BBS! Life sucks! My father who pays for everything is an ass, our 3m$ house is a prison, I hate my irritating teacher and boss who makes me annoyed. They are not friendly! Bush is evil! My mother's ramen is sticky and taste of glue. Life sucks!

[Captain Japan]

3 dead in 2 cars in suspected suicide pact
Mainichi

ODAWARA, Kanagawa -- Three people were found dead in two locked cars after they apparently committed suicide by burning charcoal and briquettes to poison themselves, police said.

A passerby spotted a suspicious car at a parking lot in the famous hot spa area of Hakone, Kanagawa Prefecture, on Wednesday afternoon and alerted police.

[Taro Toporific]

3 dead in 2 cars in suspected suicide pact
Mainichi]

WOT again?

Can't do something more creative which each other in the car?

[Captain Japan]

3 dead in 2 cars in suspected suicide pact
Mainichi]

WOT again?

Can't do something more creative which each other in the car?

There was an interesting article in the Asahi (paper edition) a few weeks ago that said briquette sellers were becoming suspicious about what their customers were going to be doing with their products.

[Mulboyne]

There was an interesting article in the Asahi (paper edition) a few weeks ago that said briquette sellers were becoming suspicious about what their customers were going to be doing with their products.

If I sold briquettes, I think I would also find it prudent to suggest that I was "concerned" while continuing business as usual. I somehow don't believe that anyone has actually refused to sell a briquette. What criteria would you use?

[Taro Toporific]

[Captain Japan]

Six found dead in two suspected suicide cases in Fukuoka, Hyogo
Kyodo via Japan Today

TOKYO — Six people were found dead Sunday in two cases of suspected group suicide in Fukuoka and in Sasayama, Hyogo Prefecture, by inhaling carbon monoxide from burning charcoal in vehicles, police said.

In Fukuoka, the police found a 20-year-old female part-timer from Kitaamabe, Oita Prefecture, a 21-year-old male college student from Fukuoka's Nishi Ward, and another man believed to be in his 20s in the student's minivan on a forest road. In Sasayama, three men were also found dead in a minivan with three charcoal braziers. (Kyodo News)

[tatsujin]

I'm just waiting for someone to make a Blair Witch-esque film of this -

Burikketto doesn't role off the tongue like Ringu does though...

[dimwit]

I begining to think everyone is making to much a thing about this. There are over 30,000 suicides a year in Japan, so approximately 100 a day, and judging by this thread there seems to be a 'community clean up' about once a week. So the group cull accounts for only 1% of the total.