How to cope with parenting stress after mother and daughter suicides in Hong Kong
Case prompts concerns about pressures of raising children in city after victims argued over ‘education problems’
Hong Kong is reeling from a double tragedy on Wednesday after a 48-year-old social worker jumped to her death from her 19th-floor home in Taikoo Shing after arguing with her 12-year-old daughter about “education problems”. Hours later, the girl also jumped from her living room.
The South China Morning Post breaks down the sequence of events and examines how Hongkongers can cope with stress and maintain harmonious family relationships.
1. How did the tragedy unfold?
First, a government social worker, 48, with no record of mental illness, argued with her daughter about “education problems” at 7.45am on Wednesday, then jumped to her death at her 19th-floor home in Taikoo Shing at around 9am.
Her 12-year-old daughter discovered her mother lying on the podium on the building’s second floor after hearing a shout, and alerted police.
One source said the girl was later accompanied to Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital by family members and was advised to see a doctor for her emotional well-being.
The girl sought consultation at the hospital’s psychology unit, where a registered clinical psychologist who had been her mother’s work supervisor assessed her. She was accompanied by her father when she returned home at 7.05pm.