The city of Seoul is standing by its efforts at calling attention to bridges over the Han River that are suicide hotspots, despite evidence that the attention is leading to more, not fewer, suicide attempts.

Last September, one of the most notorious suicide spots, Mapo Bridge, was given a makeover, with its gray guardrails festooned with LED lighting, complemented by comforting and inspirational messages and pictures. Pedestrians' movements are detected, prompting slogans to appear: "The most shining moment of your life...