With the passing of Prince Philip on 9 April, the United Kingdom (UK) may have lost its last exponent of the stoic attitude that has defined so much of its modern history. Nonetheless, other cultures have picked up the baton, and modern society will always have a need for those who excel at keeping calm and carrying on.The late Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh and husband to the queen, was long celebrated (or parodied) for his distinctive personality.

In April last year, Unyakarn Booprasert, a Thai cleaner, tried to commit suicide in front of the Ministry of Finance’s building with rat poison as a “protest”, as what she was going through “happened to many people.”“I completely ran out of money. I called my friends and relatives. Everyone had no money,” Booprasert explained.

Social media usage is one of the most popular online activities. Like millions of people around the world, the first thing I do when I wake up is to scroll on Twitter. That’s how I get my news, information and celebrities’ “teas”. For some, it’s perhaps some other social network such as Instagram, Pinterest, or Facebook.

To date, the COVID-19 virus has infected over 20 million people worldwide, taking with it some 700,000 lives. The new coronavirus does not discriminate when preying on its next victim. The old, the young, rich, or poor – have all been infected with the disease. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 crisis does not just affect one’s physical health.

On 11 March, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the COVID-19 virus outbreak as a pandemic due to the exponential increase in the number of cases in more than 100 countries. Then on 16 March, President Duterte placed the entire Philippines under a “State of Calamity” amid the threats posed by COVID-19.

The new coronavirus pandemic has affected livelihoods and drastically changed how people are living their lives. In order to contain the deadly virus, governments are urging citizens to self-isolate by imposing strict measures such as citywide lockdowns. All these developments are causing a considerable amount of fear, worry and concern among members of the public.Today, the virus has infected more than two million people worldwide, taking with it over 140,000 lives.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) reported that over 800,000 people commit suicide every year. For every suicide there are many more who attempt suicide as well. A life lost to suicide is always tragic and affects everyone in the community.Earlier this year, Malaysia was shocked by news of a teen who committed suicide after reaching out in desperation to strangers on Instagram for help, but was unfortunately encouraged by them to take her life instead.

Recently, on 13 September, The ASEAN Post (TAP) published an article regarding suicide rates in Thailand. In that article, it was noted that Thailand had the highest suicide rates in ASEAN, according to a recent study conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Thailand may be called the “Land of Smiles” but a recent study by the World Health Organization (WHO) shows that this may be far from the truth. According to the study, Thailand leads ASEAN for number of suicides.The WHO has ranked Thailand 32nd in its annual suicide rate report, with a 14.4-suicide ratio for every 100,000 population, or equivalent to 10,000 deaths by suicide per year.

In May it was revealed that many primary and secondary schools in Singapore were scrapping mid-year examinations for some levels. According to Education Minister Ong Ye Kung, this was ahead of the Singapore government's plans to remove the exams by 2021.He said that more than half of primary schools will scrap mid-year exams for Primary 3 and Primary 5 by next year.