SOME 34 young men have killed themselves in a rural town in the past three years, with a stretch of the local cemetery now grimly known as "suicide row".

In the prosperous East Cork town of Midleton, the per capita suicide rate is not only the worst in Ireland but it is the second-worst in the world. Only New Zealand has a worse per-capita rate.

The shock revelation came as Midleton native, Pat Buckley (35), who lost two brothers by suicide, appealed for greater Government backing for suicide support measures, including research into what he termed "Ireland's growing but hidden epidemic".

Buckley's appeal came as it emerged that, over the past five years, ?17.5m has been spent on suicide research programmes - while Ireland's percentage of total health spending on mental health plummeted from 11pc to just over 5pc.

Mr Buckley lost two brothers, Mark (30), and James (22), to suicide since 2001.

They are just two of 34 young men - all aged under 30 - who have committed suicide in the greater Midleton area since 2002. "There is hardly a family in the town that has not been touched in some way by suicide," he said.

"If you walk down the town centre you will meet parents who have buried their children or friends who have lost loved ones through suicide."

Now, through a special charity campaign, the East Corkman is hoping to help families hit by suicide and, hopefully, make parasuicides think long and hard about the consequences of their actions.

Mr Buckley still breaks down when he recalls the suicide of his brother Mark who hanged himself in August 2002.

Mark's body was discovered by their other brother James and almost exactly one year later, James committed suicide.

"Mark left a note saying he was sorry and telling my mother and his son Calvin how much he loved them.

"He even thanked people in advance for coming to his funeral. None of us could believe it."

Such actions convinced him that suicide is not the spur-of-the-moment action that many believe.

"When we searched the house we began to believe Mark had his death planned for weeks. It was definitely pre-mediated," Pat said.

One indicator was the shock discovery of a length of rope under his pillow.

Mr Buckley has founded a special charitable organisation called Let's Get Together (LGT) which aims to help families affected by, and remove the stigma of suicide. It will hold a public meeting tomorrow in the Park Hotel, Midleton.