Despite the rapid decline in suicide rates over the last decade, every day one Kyrgyzstani citizen dies by suicide. What is more concerning is that the actual number might be much higher considering the stigma around this topic which often complicates data evaluation. For example, the World Health Organization stopped displaying data after 2020, making the National Statistical Committee of the Kyrgyz Republic the only available data source.
While the reasons behind the drastic difference between rates presented by both organizations are unclear, both sources report an almost doubled decrease in suicide rates since 2007. However, there is one tendency that has not been affected positively at all - men in Kyrgyzstan are four times more likely to die by suicide.
No life after midlife crisis
This inclination might be rooted in gender norms as the only age group where men are less likely to die by suicide is boys under 15. Teenage years are often associated with stronger enforcement of gender roles: boys are encouraged to be more independent and emotionally restrained while girls are expected to demonstrate fragility and submissiveness.
Later in life, this progresses in the idea of man as a breadwinner, centering identity around success and financial status. Consequently, this creates multiple expectations that might lead to a midlife crisis which explains why men in their thirties form the largest group of people who passed away due to suicide. Once the peak age is over, the number of suicide cases does not shrink and even grows among elders, especially after the pandemic.
Region-wise, men from rural areas are more likely to die by suicide than those who live in urban areas. The highest rates are observed in Issyk-Kul, Chui, and Naryn oblasts. While the Issyk-Kul region demonstrates the highest rates in the republic, its situation stabilized and is more than two times lower than in 2012. Chui region recovers much slower and has the highest number of suicides (98 men died there in 2022). On the other hand, Bishkek city generally has lower numbers despite its large population. This tendency might be explained by the financial advantages that living in Bishkek offers. Combined with the pressure of being a breadwinner, deprivation from these economic opportunities might push men to lose their lives to suicide.
Digging deeper into the financial issues within regions, it is important to assess the impact of the pandemic on the rise of the poorness level across the country, with Batken, Jalal-Abad, and Naryn regions reaching the top-three results. Although Naryn scores as a high-risk for a suicide region and is above average on the poorness scale, other regions like Jalal-Abad and Batken have the lowest suicide rates. Reasons for that might depend on stronger religious beliefs and communal values.
Weakness in strength
One of the main risk factors for suicide is poor mental health (source). It is predominately depicted through female archetypes: either a crying woman with depression or a thin woman with anorexia. However, the gender trouble in the suicide ratio might be an indicator of a more complex systemic issue that prevents men from getting help.
According to the records of the Republican Centre for Psychiatry and Narcology of the Ministry of Health of the Kyrgyz Republic (RCPN), men are more likely to be registered as patients compared to women, with Chui, Jalal-Abad, and Osh regions leading the records.
The gender division becomes even more explicit when analyzing the alcohol abuse recordings which are outnumbered by men, especially from Bishkek and Osh cities as well as Naryn oblast.
Being a proximal cause of suicide, alcohol consumption serves as a marker of one’s state of mental health. As substance abuse is often used as a coping mechanism when other resources are unavailable, this might signal a broader systemic issue. Men might develop substance misuse as a way to deal with both societal expectations and a lack of infrastructure to address and solve existing issues even if they decide to reach for help. This might illuminate the significant difference between suicidal cases in regions compared to big cities.
When men (are) reject(-ed) help, women die
Abuse of alcohol is not only a self-harm hazard but also a threat to the safety of others. There is a weak positive correlation between the number of female suicides and the number of men reported for domestic abuse which suggests that women might be more prone to die by suicide in the regions where intimate partner violence is more prevalent. However, it is important to note that these rates are also underreported due to the stigma. For instance, Bishkek is a significant outlier in the data on the reported cases due to the majority of crisis and advocacy centers being located in this city.
This correlation might be even more concerning taking into consideration that, unlike men, women are more likely to die by suicide before entering their thirties. At the same time, women from rural areas are more likely to face death by suicide than those living in big cities. The trend might be interpreted as a lack of agency. During their early adulthood, women are required to be obedient and subserving and forced to complete unpaid housework and child labor. After 30, they are more likely to get accustomed to new families and gain some power by becoming mothers-in-laws and grandmothers.
Conclusion
Regardless of the significant drop in the rates of suicide, men remain the majority of people who lost their lives to suicide in Kyrgyzstan. Being in their thirties and living in rural areas are influential risk factors due to societal pressure, economic hardships, and lack of facilities. There is an urgent need to implement multi-level support mechanisms as well as revisit the way mental health issues are addressed in Kyrgyzstan.
As long as men are expected not to talk about their problems, alcohol abuse is normalized as the only tool to cope instead of a structured support network, and mental health is stigmatized, this gendered ratio is unavoidable. These systemic issues cost not only many lives of men but also many lives of women and children deeply affected by the loss of a family member and loved one.
A human being who just did not know how to ask for help. And even if he knew, there were too many barriers to receive it.