Pretty shocking, although I’ve heard it all before.

In China, one woman kills herself every four minutes. According to World Health Organisation statistics, China is the only country in the world where more women commit suicide than men.

Every year, 1.5 million women attempt to take their own lives, and a further 150,000 succeed in doing so. The problem is worse in rural areas, where the suicide rate is three times higher than in the cities. Xu Rong, head of the Suicide Prevention Project at the Beijing Cultural Development Centre for Rural Women, says one of the reasons is the ready availability of poisons in agricultural areas.

“It’s all too easy to get hold of pesticides,” she says. “Some women commit suicide impulsively. A husband and wife may have a bitter fight. When it’s over, the woman just grabs some poison and drinks it.”

…Xie Lihua, editor of China’s foremost women’s magazine, agrees that traditional values are a problem.

“If a woman goes to live with her husband’s family and they treat her well, or if she’s found someone who loves and respects her, she’ll be all right. If not, things will be very difficult for her. “This is because there’s a saying among men that goes: ‘marrying a woman is like buying a horse: I can ride you and beat you whenever I like’.”

Obviously there is a lot of history here. Anyone who’s read Chinese history books (or Wild Swans) knows this goes back ages and ages. The bottom line is that to many in the country, women are still seen as an ornament, something to display in the living room when it’s beautiful, and something to abuse and discard as it loses its lustre. They may not bind their feet anymore, but many women, especially in the countryside, still endure what amounts to nothing less than torture.

Via this superb discussion site.