Suicides and attempted suicides are soaring among Myanmar refugees in Thailand, according to a new study published by the International Organization for Migration yesterday, just ahead of World Refugee Day.
The IOM study revealed that 28 refugees have killed themselves and 66 have attempted suicide in the last two years in in Mae La camp – the largest camp in Thailand for Myanmar refugees. The suicide rate in the camp is triple the global rate.
“The number of suicides is very alarming, and we urgently need to address this,” IOM project officer Harry Smith told Reuters.
The IOM is calling for urgent action to treat high levels of distress in the camp, which the organizations says are caused by restrictions on freedom of movement, economic hardship and a lack of educational opportunities.
Mae La is the largest of the nine refugee camps housing a total of around 100,000 people along the Thai-Myanmar border.
IOM records say there were 14 suicides in the camp in the last year – a significant jump up from the one suicide recorded during the period between June 2014 and May 2015.
Among the cases included in the report were one child suicide and three attempts by children.
The report says around 40 percent of the suicides involved drinking weed-killer, which is widely available in the camp. Family problems and substance abuse were also common features among families that experienced a suicide.
The IOM recommended the setting up of counseling and suicide prevention programs in the refugee camps and called for restrictions on access to poisonous substances.
Most of the refugees along the border fled Myanmar to escape military rule. Most are ethnic are members of minority groups. Many were born in the camps.
Most have not returned to Myanmar due to a lack of confidence in Aung San Suu Kyi’s civilian government and because of a perceived shortage of employment and education opportunities in their native country.
