COVID-19 pandemic induced loneliness, because of lack of social gatherings has given rise to a number of suicide cases in Japan. Pandemic-linked isolation has been blamed for the first uptick in Japanese suicides in 11 years.
To counter this problem, Japan has appointed it's first Minister for Loneliness this month after the country's suicide rate increased during the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to The Japan Times, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga added a minister of loneliness to his Cabinet earlier this month, following the example of the UK, which in 2018 became the first country to create a similar role.
Recognizing this as a serious problem, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Friday launched a designated cabinet post to alleviate social isolation.
Tetsushi Sakamoto has been appointed as the first Minister for Loneliness. The new portfolio is in addition to the charge of combating the nation's falling birth rate and revitalising regional economies.
In his inaugural press conference, Sakamoto said Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga appointed him to address national matters 'including the issue of the increasing women’s suicide rate under the pandemic', according to CNN.
In Japan, loneliness afflicts not just the older population but across different age groups, including children, young people, women and older people.
After the Great Hanshin earthquake of 1995 and the Fukushima earthquake and tsunami of 2011, many older victims had no choice but to move into temporary housing, where they later died with nobody at their bedside. Such solitary deaths, called 'kodokushi' in Japanese, have become a major public concern in Japan.
The COVID-19 pandemic has only made matters worse. At present, Japan recorded more than 426,000 COVID-19 cases and 7,577 deaths, according to data from John Hopkins University.
Japan also had the highest suicide rate out of any of the Group of Seven leading industrial nations, at 14.9 suicides per 100,000 individuals, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
