Official suicides raise questions about 'psychological pressure'

Chinese society needs to better appreciate the "psychological pressure" faced by officials after a string of suicides among them, experts have said.

Six local officials reportedly committed suicide nationwide in July. Two of them -- Zhang Bocheng, a health bureau official in Henan Province, and Wang Yunqing, a senior state-owned assets administration official in Hubei Province -- suffered "serious depression", according to their suicide notes.

On June 5, Chen Baifeng, vice mayor of Weifang City, Shandong Province, hanged himself in his house. Relatives said he had been "depressed" for many years.

The unusual deaths have led to debate about how to stop this happening in future. It is hardly surprising that officials feel under strain. They face growing scrutiny as to their performances, and China's unprecedented anti-corruption campaign has had an extremely frightening impact, according to some.

In a number of cases, depression is simply an illness, not necessarily related to external factors.

"It deserves our reflection that the officials, who were respected and admired for their career and status, finally chose suicide, said Du Zhizhou, an academic in anti-corruption research at Beihang University.

A positive value system should be advocated in society and multiple ways adopted to alleviate psychological pressure, he suggested. "More people should realize that cracking down on corrupted officials is a long and arduous process. Everyone must have opportunities for a good career and life despite the challenges."

Understandably, officials were reluctant to go on record about the pressure they face, but some spoke to Xinhua on the condition that they would not be identified.