A total of 1,431 persons committed suicide in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the period 2020-2023, according to statistic dana collected by competent agencies.

In terms of demography, nearly 80 percent of the suicide cases were recorded among the males. Those who committed suicide in BiH in the said period were mostly persons above the age of 60, so it is assumed that the cause might be the feeling of ‘uselessness’ and neglect, according to the Centre for Security Studies.

“One of the problems is that there is no unified register of suicides in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and there is a perception that such cases are ignored. Also, the data on the number of people who commit suicide later in their age should be a kind of alarm that requires greater engagement and creating a new value system about caring for the elderly. Therefore, the legitimate question arises to what extent we are becoming an insensitive society, given that the issue of suicide cases and the traumas that are subsequently faced by the relatives of the victims do not arouse as much public interest as, for example, the cases of murders, the number of which is much smaller,” said Denis Hadzovic, the centre president.

Suicide is defined as an active or passive act of self-destruction, where a person consciously or deliberately takes its life for various reasons. Suicide is one of the rare phenomena entirely free of religious, sexual, racial, cultural, social, age or other limits.

Blue line (080 05 03 05) is an anonymous, free of charge counseling line for children, youth and adults, a place to turn to when a person encounters a problem, is not feeling well or needs to talk about its feelings. Those who pick up the call will listen and try to solve the problem together. Counselors or psychologists are available every working day from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.