PUBG causes 3rd suicide
TRIBUNE CREATIVE
The third case of suicide linked with the Players Unidentified Battlegrounds (PUBG) online game in the provincial capital in two weeks has alarmed the law enforcement authorities.
Eighteen-year-old Shaharyar was reportedly found hanging in a room of his rented house in Punjab Housing Society near Ghazi Road on Tuesday.
The victim’s brother, Shoaib, who works as a salesman, confirmed to the authorities that he was a PUBG addict. The family belongs to Quetta.
A suicide note was found at the scene. The victim reportedly made a video call to a girl before committing suicide and also apologised to his friend and PUBG partner, who is a shopkeeper living on the lower floor of the house.
The Inspector General of Punjab Police (IGP), Shoaib Dastagir, warned in a letter to the interior ministry that youth were being devastated due to the online game and their future was being ruined. The youth kept on playing the game throughout the night and at least three of them had died because of the PUBG in recent days, he asserted.
Last week, Senior Superintendent of Police (Administration) Liaqat Ali Malik sent a letter to the IGP on the issue. He pointed out that a youth, Mohammad Zakarya, son of Khawaja Sohail, a resident of Henjerwal, had committed suicide by hanging himself on June 23 after he missed the ‘mission’ assigned to him while playing the PUBG. A mobile phone was found on a bed near the body with the PUBG game running.
The boy had appeared in matriculation examinations and used to play the game for many hours a day. He father also confirmed his obsession with the online game.
The official wrote that the PUBG was an online multiplayer battle royale game that had gained immense popularity among the youth. “The game has influenced the youth and changes in behaviour have been observed after ‘failing the mission’.”
The letter read that excessive violence could trigger aggressive thoughts, causing violent behavior; addiction to complete the mission caused pain, agony and anxiety, resulting in depression and stress; the players spent more time in playing the PUBG, which meant they ended up becoming less socially active and sitting in front of the screen for too long caused disruption in sleep pattern, resulting in deterioration of physical and mental health.
The online game was developed by a South Korean company in 2017. It is designed as a survival game in which the players are dropped onto an island and are supposed to fight to survive.
Applied Psychology Professor at Punjab University Dr Farah Malik said the incidents and trends need to be studied in the context of the current Covid-19 situation. The children had been locked in houses for the last four months and were frustrated as they had no activities to channelise their energy.
She added that the age of the two boys who reportedly committed suicide due to the PUBG was termed in psychology, the age of turmoil. “It is the time when a lot of hormonal changes are happening.” The children, especially boys, need a lot of activities. The lack of activities leads to frustration.
The letter requested steps for banning the game and an awareness campaign to avoid such incidents in future.
On June 20, a 20-year-old student of second year at the FC College University had also reportedly committed suicide after being scolded by his family for playing the PUBG. The victim, identified as Jonty Joseph, lived in North Cantonment area. His father reportedly reprimanded him for playing the online game for a long period. The youth locked himself in a room. The next day when he did not opened the door, the family broke it and found him hanged.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 2nd, 2020.