Chinese Student ‘Zoufan’ Hangs Herself: Weibo Suicide Note Posts Online Next Day

A Chinese college student committed suicide on Saturday night, just after leaving a farewell note that would auto-post online hours after her death.

China's Global Times reports that the student was a senior at Jinling Technology College in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, where she studied finance. She posted the note on a social networking site called Sina Weibo, under the username Zoufan. She then hung herself in her dorm room, leaving the suicide note to publish itself on Sunday morning.

By the time friends and officials could respond to her message, it was far too late.

I suffer from depression, and just choose to die. Do not worry about me and my death, since I did not die for any important reason. Bye bye. Life itself is the process of committing suicide, said the note.

Previous posts by Zoufan hinted at her state of mind. I cry every time when I call my mom, and I'm not strong at all, she wrote on the day of her death, according to China Daily. An earlier post read: Every day that I live is proof that dumbasses can survive.

After her death was confirmed, a forum was opened on Sina Weibo where other users could post messages in response to the incident. So far, over two million users have commented.

Sina Weibo is an immensely popular microblogging network, similar to Twitter in the United States. Content on the site is closely censored, according to a 2012 study conducted by Carnegie Mellon University. A March 16 policy now requires all Weibo users to post under their real names, which could enable even tighter government control.

In response Zoufan's death, Chinese officials posted an instructive message via the Weibo account of the Jiangning Police Department: Life is precious, and we hope that we can all cherish it. If friends or relatives seem like they may commit suicide, please try to contact the police before it's too late.

China's Center for Disease Control and Prevention said in 2011 that the country's suicide rate -- 22.23 people out of every 100,000 -- was one of the highest in the world. Among those between the ages of 15 and 34, suicide was the most frequent cause of death. The China Post reported that extreme pressure to perform well at school and to find employment were the main reasons behind the high rate of suicide among China's youths.