Murder-suicide raises concern

Blontank Poer, The Jakarta Post/Boyolali

Anisa, 9, a third grader at the Sindon Madrasah Ibtida'iyah Islamic school screamed in panic, "Astiwi is hanged... Astiwi is hanged."

Anisa seldom found the main door locked when she returned home from school at around 11 a.m. Her mother, Mujinem, 30, would often greet her affectionately at the front door.

This time, however, there was no one to open the door and she peeked through the keyhole. Her screams summoned dozens of Sindon villagers who broke the door down.

Astiwi Lestari, 2, Anisa's younger sister, was found on Wednesday hanging from a piece of plastic rope tied to the house crossbeam that connected two pillars four meters high.

Mujinem, her mother, was also found hanging with a waist sash around her neck less than a meter away, a bamboo ladder was nearby.

Mujinem had borrowed the ladder from Senen, a neighbor, at 9:30 a.m., on the pretext that she wanted to mend the roof of her house.

"No one felt suspicious because we had talked with Mujinem from morning and we saw nothing strange about her," Safitri told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

Mujinem's husband, Mujiono, 40, was still in a severe state of shock, and Anisa was taken to a relative's house.

Family members and neighbors said that Mujinem was known to be a quiet and introverted person.

"But she told me once that she owed a lot of money, the amounts of which she never mentioned. She also sensed that her husband didn't trust her because he considered she wasn't thrifty enough with money," Safitri said.

Mujiono said he often asked his wife about the condition of the household finances. "But every time I asked her, she threw tantrums at me. I didn't mean to be fussy about it," said Mujiono, who works as a bricklayer, earning between Rp 150,000 (US$16.00) to Rp 200,000 a month.

The poor family had been living with Mujiono's parents for the past 11 years, relied on Mujiono's earnings to live.

Mujiono also tilled the family rice field not far from the house when he was not working.

The reserved man said that he never knew what problems had caused his wife to commit suicide and take the life of his second child.

In the past 14 months, said Mujiono, his wife had on five occasions attempted to commit suicide; by drinking pesticides, pouring kerosene over herself and trying to kill herself on the road.

"Five months ago, instead of using the money to buy vegetables, she spent it on liquid mosquito repellent worth Rp 7,500. As I felt suspicious, I observed her intently to prevent her from committing such a dreadful act," said Mujiono.

Mujiono said that Mujinem had never threatened him with suicide. "She abruptly committed suicide and took my daughter with her without threatening me or my parents beforehand," he said.

While they were not common, murder-suicides, often by mothers, were a recognized problem, Prof. Dr. Sjamsul Hadi, a psychologist from the Surakarta 11 Maret University, said.

"Usually, the person whom a suicidal person takes along is his or her most beloved one," Sjamsul told the Post.

He said that suicides or amok acts were usually committed by people with introverted personalities who were prone to depression. They easily blamed themselves and often feel deep sorrow over trivial matters.

"Economic hardship can become a trigger for suicide or people running amok," he said.