It's been barely 2 days since we received news of the death of my brother-in-law's nephew in Perth.
This young man was at the prime age of 20 and would have had a bright future had he lived. His death has been a total shock to everyone in the family. His untimely death brought grief and extreme pain to the whole family. No funeral has been held yet, pending police investigation as to the cause of death. WHY the police , you may ask?
I, for one am overcome not just with grief but frustration, disgust and anger. Let me not spare you the unusual manner of how he took his life. He had utilized the Internet and its free information available from thousands of sites teaching people in despair how to end their lives by using various methods. (online euthanasia clinics)
All this boy had to get was a plastic bag and HELIUM gas, the type you get from party / balloon shops. You don't need to be a rocket scientist to rig this up and worst of all, it's not illegal.
In a world where we are bombarded daily with news of cyclones, earthquakes, famine and sickness, we don't need children dying like this. There needs to be some form of check and balance webmasters and Internet providers have to employ before anything of this nature is posted for the world to see.
This has been done successfully with child pornography sites in most countries and I don't see why sites that encourage taking your life should be any different. Please understand that I am only talking about not allowing children to have access to these sites.
The stress of living daily can take its toll on each and everyone of us. When we feel intimidated, frustrated and very often feel like the whole world is collapsing around us, we need to voice our feelings and thoughts to someone. Unfortunately. most of the time, seeking help itself intimidates us, we lose our inner voice and try to find alternatives. Sometimes not the right ones. And in the case of this young man a fatal one.
I will not surround my two precious children with colorful beanbags to cushion them from the realities of life. Nor am I going to ban the INTERNET or SAT TV.
Like my husband says, we don't live in the sticks and we are not hermits , therefore I will guide them through the rivers, ravines, hills and mountains as much as I can and to the best of my knowledge, teaching them everything I know about the life's troubles & joys.
We, in Kuala Lumpur will grief together with our family members in Australia.
May God bless us with faith, peace, hope and love.
