A missionary of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME) in Japan pointed out that increasing isolation, academic pressure, and bullying are driving more minors to take their own lives, despite an overall decline in the country’s suicide rate.
Fr. Marco Villa, who has been serving in the Diocese of Saitama since 2009, said “Children, increasingly alone in their families, feel the pressure to excel all on them.”
“There is strong competition within the classes, and the phenomenon of bullying continues to be a plague, even if in a less explicit way,” the priest said in a report by AsiaNews.
In 2023, Japan recorded 527 cases of youth suicides, an increase of 14 from the previous year, and up from 513 cases in 2022.
High school students accounted for the majority of the cases, with 349 deaths, while 15 involved elementary school children. The rising number of suicides among young girls is particularly alarming, with 288 cases recorded.
A Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare official described the situation as “serious” and stressed the need for deeper analysis to understand the causes of this distressing trend.
Fr. Villa noted that isolation is a significant problem among young people in Japan, with many withdrawing from society. “In almost all classes, it happens that one or two students stop attending lessons,” he said.
Government data supports this observation, showing that in 2023 alone, 415,252 minors refused to attend school.
Since 2012, Fr. Villa has been coordinating “Mizu Ippai,” a listening center that offers support to hikikomori—individuals who withdraw from society and live in isolation.
“In our center, we don’t actually have many minors, but some pass through,” he explained. “The case of a girl comes to mind, who stopped going out when she was still in elementary school because other girls bullied her for her physical appearance. Fortunately, her story had a happy ending and now she is fine.”
Despite Japan’s total suicide rate decreasing to 20,268 in 2023—one of the lowest figures since records began in 1978—mental health challenges remain widespread.
Fr. Villa pointed out that “it is quite common for families to have a member with some form of psychological or mental distress. Often, however, only drug treatment is offered. Accompanying therapies are very expensive, so people often find themselves carrying this cross alone.”
The priest emphasized that cultural factors play a significant role in youth distress. In Japan, individuals often isolate themselves to avoid becoming a burden to others, a concept reflected in the term “hikikomori.”
Social morality continues to exert a strong influence in the country, reinforcing these tendencies. As young people transition into adulthood and enter the workforce, the social spaces available to them diminish, making it even harder for them to find support and connection in an increasingly rigid society.
The primary challenge for “Mizu Ippai” is recognizing individuals in distress before their situation worsens. In cases where young people come from stable family backgrounds, parents or social services may step in to seek assistance.
However, when individuals isolate themselves in their rooms, it becomes increasingly difficult to reach them. Most of those who seek help at the center already have an established diagnosis of psychological distress, making intervention even more complex.
