Japanese often choose suicide as way out of financial trouble

From Tokyo Bureau Chief Marina Kamimura

TOKYO (CNN) -- There's a dark side to Japan's recent economic problems, a side for which there are no quick fixes and the toll is all too human.

The number of suicides in Japan is nearing record levels -- propelled higher by a large jump in the number of deaths related to economic troubles.

One of the most bizarre cases happened earlier this year when three men, friends who each ran an auto parts company, hanged themselves in a hotel room.

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CNN's Marina Kamimura reports
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Two of the men had dug their companies into a financial hole trying to rescue the third. Eventually, as their debts snowballed and banks refused to lend them any more money, all three chose suicide.

"They ran out of time. So they decided to die together, since they couldn't allow one to die alone," says Yutaka Iwasawa, who now runs one of the companies.

Of his former boss, Iwasawa says: "He protected our company by sacrificing his life. I feel the least I can do in return is to ensure this company survives."

Such suicides would be difficult to understand in other societies, where someone with financial problems might choose bankruptcy and try to start over again. But in Japan, suicide is considered by many to be an acceptable way out of difficult times -- a way to atone for mistakes.

So when the economy is performing poorly, it is not unusual to see a spike in the suicide rate.

It's also no coincidence that today's victims tend to be small-business owners and middle-aged men. Banks are lending less, as they themselves try to ease a large amount of debt off their books, and practices such as lifetime employment are also starting to unravel.

Suicide victims tend to be small-business owners and middle-aged men

"In the United States, you can find a new job in your 40s or 50s. But that's impossible in Japan," says Junosuke Tasaki of Waseda University. "For instance, take a man running a small company. Management gets stuck. There's a lot of debt. Can he find a job? The answer is almost always no."

"There's nothing he can do but escape. He can escape if he is alone. If not, he might choose death, especially if he has a wife and children and a good life insurance policy," Tasaki says.

In his suicide note, Iwasawa's boss requested that the $1.4 million payout from his life insurance be used to pay off his company's debt. As a result, the firm will break even next year. Unfortunately, the revival came at a cost that can never be repaid.

"I hope strongly that everyone understands that he didn't commit suicide because he had something to hide," Iwasawa says. "We will do everything we can to continue building what he started. We owe him that."