Tuesday, November 13, 2007 Ledesma: Poverty and suicide By Jun Ledesma Sunbursts
POVERTY has nothing to do with suicides. I am not saying that. World statistics shows that the rates of suicide are highest in rich countries than in the third world. Suicide is high in Finland and Austria. In the United States, for example, teenage suicide rates are spiraling despite rising incomes. Teenage stress and depression and not poverty are what prompt youngsters to commit suicide.
It is unfortunate that Marianeth Amper took her life. My heart bleeds for her but then I am not inclined to believe the political statements and NGOs' self-serving diagnosis that the poor child died because of extreme poverty. I have seen the face of poverty up close within my immediate environment as a child of Marianeth's age and beyond the confines of the nipa hut where we lived. There were episodes of depression but suicide was never a terminal option of the poor.
Other causes do. Apparently Marianeth was experiencing a feat of depression. It did not help that the atmosphere in the home and the external factors like her school were so stressful for her. It is also unfortunate that she was told that she cannot do what she wants to do to help. Her school attendance faltered. I cannot also understand why, by her own account, she felt she missed so many classes. I have seen children walk their way barefoot to school with nary a "baon" to tide them during recess or break. Surely, Marianeth, with all her wish lists is not one who can give up on her dreams. There are other conditions that should explain why she took her own life. And I believe that poverty is not one of these.
In a highly politicized climate linking teenage suicide to poverty is a common fare. The political opposition propaganda machinery is ready on cue to give a slant to this tragic event as though poverty only happens today. Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte who enjoys an extremely high popularity should expect that his political adversary will drum this up to discredit him. No doubt even the unscrupulous non-government organizations will feast on this issue to solicit for grants from donor foundations to support their so-called poverty alleviation-cum education projects. With the magma of news items written about the fate of Marianeth, NGOs have enough materials for clippings in their project proposals. They did this with environment issues, why not with "poverty-driven-suicides." Nothing can stop them from commercializing this unfortunate event. Nothing will deter political enemies to exploit this as a political issue.
For Marianeth to not have died in vain, we ought to look closely at the ghettos around us. We should put to task the barangay organizations for they are supposed to be the basic government units that are closely in touch with the residents. They ought to know the family profiles in the bloc. I do not know who is the barangay captain in Ma-a where Marianeth resides but he ought to change priorities. As I enunciated from a previous column, barangay leaders should depart from basketball and fiesta mentality. They should focus on how to alleviate the poor from abject poverty by providing some means to engage in sustainable livelihood instead of basketball courts. If other poor families can, why not the others? Maybe they can start by stopping cigarette smoking and drinking.
BTW, our city authorities and DSWD must wage a no-nonsense campaign against street children and adult using infants as props who are "begging" for money from motorists. They are potential traffic victims waiting to happen any moment. In the junction of Ponciano Reyes st., Jacinto st. and MacArthur Avenue, about a dozen tykes would run close and even cling on vehicles knocking on windows to beg for money. Some motorists are obliged to give. The kids would then run to one corner and play "hantak"!
