| By Kiana Wilburg When 19-year-old Glenda McCurdy made the decision to sever ties with her lover, 22-year-old Terry Alexander, he refused to accept rejection. Overcome with heartache, he ensured that McCurdy, the woman he was dangerously in love with, paid for her decision with her life. In February last, he shot her in the chest. Minutes later, he killed himself with a bullet to the head.The first suicide case for 2016 spoke of a different scenario.Twenty-year-old Deeraj Persaud and Sherry Ann Ally, 14, of Lonsdale and Brother’s Village,Cheap NFL Jerseys China, East Bank Berbice respectively were sure that they were in love. In fact, Ally was expecting her first child. But their relationship came to a tragic end. In January last, they were found by relatives hanging from ropes in Persaud’s bedroom.Investigators believed that the couple might have committed suicide after the relationship was not approved by Ally’s family.However, the death of 22-year-old Roshinee Pagwah remains shrouded in mystery. She was a ‘hip” young woman from Berbice who was full of potential and “seemed” happy. But when she took a plunge to death off of the Kaieteur Falls, it caught her friends and family members by surprise. What was even more unbelievable and hard to digest was the fact that Pagwah was planning her death days in advance.The aforementioned are just part of the innumerable instances of suicide that are reported to the authorities.While there have been a number of efforts geared towards suicide prevention and awareness, a team of professional filmmakers and producers will dare to take a thought-provoking and daring approach.They aim to expose the horrifying and naked realities of suicide in Guyana through a ground breaking, investigative documentary on the issue.Their hope is to showcase all sides to the social ill in hopes of pushing policy makers into meaningful action while educating the wider Guyanese community.THE TEAMThe folks involved in this challenging but meaningful project includes; Co-Directors and Filmmakers; Dan Honegger and Cory Cross; and Executive Producer and Fixer Kevin Daby.According to their website www.kickstarter.com; Honeggar uses his imaginative approach in developing photos and films on commercial, creative,Cheap NBA Jerseys China, and independent projects. His intrigue with cultures and international development motivated him to join the Peace Corps. Serving as a Peace Corps volunteer in South America, and living in Guyana for three years, Honeggar has engaged in international development, teaching, and filmmaking.The site says that for over eight years, Cross has been professionally filming documentary and commercial videos. He has developed his own video production business working with companies such as Nike, Hershey,Cheap NFL Jerseys China, and Bloomberg. His passion for working with people and filming real life events has lead him to shoot domestically and internationally, including Mexico, Costa Rica, Trinidad, Jamaica and Guyana.As for Daby, he grew up in Guyana and moved to the U.S. in 2002. He holds a Baccalaureate of Fine Arts Degree in Graphic Design from Florida Atlantic University. He is currently the marketing manager of his family’s business, the Grand Coastal Hotel.On their website, the team says that the 45 minute long investigative documentary will explore the ideological beliefs and cultural norms that contribute to Guyana’s high suicide rate. In addition to providing a medium for local people to tell their stories, the team said that this film will examine Guyana’s current suicide prevention strategies. The film is expected to premier in February 2017.THE POLITICSThe idea of how measures by the political leaders of the day are making an impact in the suicide prevention drive will also be captured in the ambitious documentary.But truth be told, political sphere is also filled with its own fights when it comes to this social ill and in most cases, the discussions do not lead to a cohesive way forward with all political agents involved.In fact it was in early last month that People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Member, Dr. Vindhya Persaud brought a motion to the National Assembly on curbing the rise of the suicide rate in Guyana.The Opposition parliamentarian said that the incidence of suicide has been consistently increasing in 2016 with the younger members of the population taking or attempting to take their lives. Dr. Persaud said that suicide accounted for 1.4 per cent of all deaths worldwide in 2012,Wholesale NFL Jerseys, making it the 15th leading cause of death. Among the age group of 15 to 30, anywhere in the world, suicide is among the top three causes of deaths, she said.The Member of Parliament told the House that in Guyana’s case, suicide has ranked in the top 10 causes of death for the last several decades. She said that in the age group 15 to 24, suicide ranks between one and three, in terms of the top causes of deaths. Dr. Persaud said that in the 1980s, suicide deaths were about 200 to 250 per year. In the last decade it has been between 150 and 200 cases per year.The politician also informed her colleagues that it is estimated that there are between 1,500 to 2,000 attempted suicide cases each year or about one attempt every five hours in Guyana. Around the world, she said, it is estimated that there is one suicide attempt almost every second.Dr. Persaud asserted that while Guyana has done no such studies, it is estimated that suicide costs the Health Ministry, conservatively, about $600M to $900M annually, excluding the loss of life, family income and emotional and psychological anguish for the surviving family members.The Member of Parliament said that the majority of suicides occur among people suffering mental health conditions and illness such as depression, bipolar disorders and schizophrenia. Social issues such as alcohol abuse, poverty and unemployment also contribute to the growing number of suicide cases.“The current economic situation in the agricultural communities due to falling rice prices,cheap jerseys from china, loss of income and consequential foreclosures on loans in the banking sector, coupled with the state of the sugar industry where jobs are under threat, and, the unemployment of thousands of people in the last nine months in the public service and general society, are leading to a state of despair and hopelessness which are factors contributing to this rise,” Dr. Persaud asserted.She added, “Whilst there are cultural, religious, class and other prejudices that inhibit people from seeking help for mental health problems, the mental health services are inadequate to meet the demand, with only three full time psychiatrists (based in Georgetown and New Amsterdam), insufficient hospital beds and trained personnel in the National Psychiatric Hospital, and no day treatment or community residential facilities, and, inadequate numbers of counselors, to help and treat patients.”Dr. Persaud stressed that there are insufficient counselors in the educational system, both private and public, to provide support to students of all ages. She said that the availability and easy accessibility of poisons, especially in rural agricultural communities, contributes to making this the easiest method of committing suicide in Guyana.She called on the Government to implement the comprehensive 2014 Mental Health Strategic Plan and the National Suicide Prevention Plan 2015 — 2020 which was crafted under the PPP government. She also called for the Government to ensure that funds are allocated to provide the financial,Cheap NFL Jerseys China, human, technical and physical infrastructure needed to treat mental health and level of suicide as a national health priority;The Opposition Member also emphasized the need for the Ministry of Public Health to resuscitate the National Suicide Prevention and Control Committee with regional committees, comprising both professionals from health, education, law enforcement and civil society, so as to update and lead the National Strategy to Prevent and Control Suicide Committee within three months of its appointment, on a national education and awareness campaign.Irrespective of the motion’s honourable intentions, it was struck down.The government’s side did not lend its support. In fact, the motion was seen as an attempt to steal Government’s thunder, since it included several of the initiatives already being embarked on by Government ministries. |
