Why people commit suicide? Bushra Al-Sibaie/Okaz We read reports of suicides in local newspapers almost every day. Some of the people who kill themselves are foreign maidservants. Why do they go to such extremes? Authorities must find out the reasons and deal with them seriously. They should announce the factors that forced some expatriate workers to end their lives, even if they expose some of our failings. Foreign maidservants are not the only people who are driven to such desperation. The number of Saudi youths committing suicide is growing day by day. Authorities attribute these cases to economic woes and lack of strong Islamic faith. But there are many other reasons. We should not run away from this problem by saying that the number of suicide cases in the Kingdom is far less compared to Western countries. Such comments will not solve the problem. Social situations in the Kingdom and Western countries are different. In the West, children commit suicide because of the negligence or failure of families to take care of their youngsters. In our society, it is just the opposite, increasing family pressure, especially from fathers who want to impose their will on their sons, ignoring the latter’s wishes. The prevailing culture in our society demand that sons act like an extension of their fathers. Fathers impose their views on everything from academic specialization to selection of brides, etc. Some children may not like it. So in many cases families are responsible for pushing their children to end their lives. In such cases anger, protest or revenge takes the form of suicide. http://www.arabnews.com/Article.asp?ID=17820 Feeling suicidal? have a beef sandwich. JEDDAH, 17 August — The Ministry of Commerce has destroyed 300 kilos of banned frozen meat imported from a European country. Mohammed Al-Harbi, director of the ministry’s office in Jeddah, told Arab News that the meat was impounded at Jeddah Islamic Port. “The consignment was checked by the customs department and was found that it was imported from a European country,” he said. “We rejected the trader’s proposal to donate the meat to the International Islamic Relief Organization,” he added. However, the ministry gave the trader a choice of either re-exporting the meat or destroying it. A team was later formed with representatives from the ministry, customs department and port to destroy the consignment. The ministry had slapped a blanket ban on meat imports from 15 European countries following reports that they used artificial hormones — which cause cancer and infertility — as fodder. Al-Harbi called upon businessmen not to import any meat products from Europe to avoid financial losses. “They should also contact the ministry before they import any foodstuff and other consumer items from foreign countries,” he added. The ministry had earlier banned beef and sheep meat imports from all European countries without exception fearing the spread of mad cow disease. http://www.arabnews.com/Article.asp?ID=17818