admin
Ray Bande
Senior Reporter
AT least nine people are resorting to taking their own lives every month in Manicaland Province, most of them being males who are failing to deal with marital challenges, The Manica Post has learned.
On average, all of Manicaland’s districts are each recording at least one suicide case every month since the start of 2023.
This was revealed by Manicaland provincial police spokesperson, Inspector Nobert Muzondo in an interview with The Manica Post.
Inspector Muzondo said since the start of the year, a total of 65 suicide cases have been recorded in Manicaland, 21 of them through poisoning, while 44 took their own lives by hanging.
Of the 65 cases, 29 of them were a result of social issues, mainly related to marital challenges.
“We have had a total of 65 reported suicide cases across Manicaland Province since the beginning of the year. Most of the people who committed suicide are males and this has been a direct result of social challenges, mainly marital disputes or Gender Based Violence (GBV).
“Of the 65,21 of them committed suicide through poisoning, while 44 took their own lives by hanging. Causes of 32 of the suicide cases are unknown, and they were committed using various other means such as throwing themselves onto oncoming locomotives, etcetera,” said Inspector Muzondo.
According to Inspector Muzondo, some of the suicide cases were horrific in nature.
“We have had very unfortunate cases in Manicaland where some people chose to set themselves on fire and went on to kill innocent kids, like what recently happened in Mafararikwa Village in Marange.
“The same applies to an equally terrifying case that happened in Nyanga recently where a man used an axe to kill his wife and children before he went on kill himself by hanging,” he said.
The Manicaland police spokesperson said suicide cases being experienced in Manicaland could be significantly reduced if social systems that provide counselling services are activated.
Inspector Muzondo also said engaging traditional leaders in cleansing homes or areas that would have gone through a spate of suicide cases may go a long way in reducing the cases.
“As the Zimbabwe Republic Police, we believe that people should be able to exploit the existing social systems, public and within families, that provide counselling services.
“Social or marital problems by nature are common and are bound to happen in our day to day existence but the truth is that no situation is permanent. Situations can be solved, with people moving on with their lives.
“The challenge we have is that most of those that end up committing suicide would have gone into denial. They think everyone has deserted them and life is suddenly meaningless but we are saying nothing can take away the sanctity of human life. We should never unnecessarily lose precious human lives that way.
“The other avenue that we believe should be exploited is the engagement with traditional leadership. We are African, and we cannot run away from that. Traditional leaders need to be engaged in order to make an effort to cleanse the suicidal spirits that could be haunting families of certain areas,” said Inspector Muzondo.
Online Reporter