2oceansvibe News | South African and international news

Sponsored by RSAWeb rss
2ov Radio
  • Home
  • About
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Seth Rotherham
  • Lifestyle & Hospitality
  • Café du Cap
  • Cabine du Cap
  • Media Packs / Advertising
  • Contact
    • Contact
    • Anonymous Tips
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
Seth Rotherham
  • SA Police Have A Suicide Problem

    03 Feb 2016 by Sloane Hunter in Lifestyle, South Africa
    Related Posts
    • More Colourful Commentary After SAPS Officer Crashes Through Wall [Video]
    • "Watch These Dorks" - Presenting Pakistan’s Rollerblading (Whilst Shooting) Cops [Video]
    • It Didn't Take Long For The Budget Speech Protest To Turn Ugly [Video]
    • Police Summoned As Nicole Kidman Gets Swatted At The Opera
    • Bomb Squad Rescues Cape Security Guard With Explosives Strapped To His Body [Video]

    There’s a high coverage of cop shootings by the media – on both the attack and “defence” side of the battle between them and criminals. Heck, we have shown you most of them. But a new statistic is even more worrying: Between 2012 and 2013, 115 officers died by suicide compared to 29 officers murdered on duty.

    That’s a four-to-one ratio.

    Compared to 0.9 percent per 100 000 South Africans who die by suicide, the police rate is 73.9 per 100 000. Yet South Africa is not an anomaly. Other countries, especially those which are “democratic” claim suicide the leading cause of death among police officers.

    The problem? That, when dealing with emotive problems, the attitude is:

    Cowboys don’t cry.

    The emotive problems are linked to depression and post-traumatic stress that is not spoken about: According to a report of the 153,000 (estimated) SAPS personnel, 10,000 officers suffered from depression and 2700 from post-traumatic stress disorder.

    And, as most things that control us, it’s all about the use of language: The social stigma of suicide is regularly referred to as committed – associating it with a criminal act. Police are not skilled with talking about personal issues, especially those associated with shame, and so do not seek help.

    Such phrasing may also contribute to why the names of officers who die by suicide are excluded on memorial walls and annual rolls of honour. This, despite some of the officers having served society for years before taking their own life.

    If a member of the SAPS is killed while on duty, the family gets paid a death benefit and proceeds from life insurances. But should an officer die by suicide, no compensation benefit is received by the family.

    To date, very little research has been done on the causes of police suicide. This needs to change.

    [source: timeslive]

    • ← Here’s How You Should Start (And Possibly End) Your First Thursdays
    • The Latest Carpool Karaoke With Chris Martin Is Top Notch [Video] →
    • Tweet
    • Tags:
    • police
    • SAPS
    • suicide

    Latest News

    • Items From Paul Kruger’s ‘Missing Hoard’ Now Up For Auction

      [imagesource:here] The legend of the 'Lost Hoard' or 'Kruger Millions' begins during th...

    • Cheeky Cape Town Billboard Battle Gets Tongues Wagging [Images]

      Everybody loves a good advertising back and forth. You may remember the famous BMW vers...

    • What It’s Like On The Front Lines Of Mexico’s Cartel Wars [Video]

      [imagesource: Miguel Fernández-Flores / VICE] Around 15 years ago, Mexico launched “...

    • Insane: Tom Cruise Has A TikTok Deepfake Problem [Video]

      Ever since his Oprah couch-bouncing incident, the world has been keeping a close eye on To...

    • Friday Laughs: ‘Dude With Sign’ Guy’s Game Is Strong These Days

      [imagesource: Instagram / @dudewithsign] Should we have a call before the Zoom call jus...


    • 2oceansvibe Partners

    • CONTACT US
    • GOT A HOT STORY?
    • 2oceansvibe Radio
    • 2oceansvibe Media
    • Media Pack
    • Seth Rotherham
    • Café du Cap
    • Cabine du Cap
    • Cape Town City Accommodation
    • Terms & Conditions
    • Business
    • Media
    • Entertainment
    • Tech/Sci
    • World
    • Travel
    • Lifestyle
    • Sport
    • Politics
  • Follow

    2oceansvibe.com is part of the 2oceansVibe Media Group

    DMMA Logo