No time to die: Shaken and stirred

 

From Dr Venugopal Balchand

Last week, somebody I know took her own life. She was very young and had the whole world at her feet. Yet she chose to shoot an own goal.

I was shaken. The incident stirred up a lot of different emotions in me. Here I was, part of a very prominent, active and efficient mental health coalition and chairman of its focus group on decriminalisation of attempted suicides, and yet I could not protect someone within arm’s reach.

How did she slip through the net into the vast expanse of silence and darkness? Could somebody, anybody have helped her? This person had chosen an almost foolproof way to die. Can you even imagine the agony she must have gone through while meticulously planning to end it all? Like planning to kill the enemy within while ensuring there were no losers?

Statistics from the police show that between January and May, 468 people committed suicide in Malaysia. That is three individuals daily. Extrapolating that figure, we stand to lose around 1,125 people this year, almost double the 631 we lost in 2020.

What many Malaysians may not be aware of is that for every completed suicide, there are as many as 20 attempted suicides. That’s 22,500 attempted suicides in Malaysia in 2021. Just a few thousand short of the number of Covid-19 deaths in Malaysia so far.

For all the havoc that the pandemic has wreaked upon us, Covid-19 has also brought Malaysians together like never before. The affection, care and concern that Malaysians have bestowed upon each other irrespective of race, religion and socioeconomic status is one of the standout takeaways from our war with Covid-19.

We need that same passion, same commitment, same empathy and that same willingness to lend a helping hand if we are to reduce the number of suicides in Malaysia.

Suicide is a complex phenomenon with multiple risk factors and triggers. The most important, however, is pre-existing mental illness. Even today, the public perceptions and attitudes towards mental illness can certainly improve. There needs to be no stigma attached to being mentally unwell. How often have we seen people react with “So sad” or “How unfortunate” to a diagnosis of cancer, stroke or heart disease, and the same person say “Oh! Mental!” or “Send laa to Tanjung Rambutan!” to a diagnosis of severe depression, bipolar disorder or schizophrenia.

Come on, we can be better. As of today, attempted suicides are a crime in Malaysia, liable to be charged under Section 309 of the Penal Code, with punishments of up to a year of imprisonment, fine or both. Only Myanmar and Brunei in the Asean region have similar laws.

Dedicated attempts by a multitude of passionate groups over the past decade have, however, made significant inroads into the understanding of the reasons for attempting suicides and the fact that these individuals need urgent medical attention rather than possible detention.

Malaysia is on the cusp of repealing Section 309 and both the health ministry and the Attorney-General’s Chambers are working hard to table the relevant documents in Parliament at the earliest. Kudos MoH! Tahniah AGC!

The number of suicides in Malaysia has skyrocketed during this pandemic and there is no better time than now to effect change, acknowledge the importance of treating mental illness and pay homage to all the innocent lives lost over the years.

This short article is not meant to add to the library of evidence and reasons to repeal Section 309. We are almost there. I mend broken hearts for a living in the confines of an operating theatre. I just wanted to unashamedly say that my own heart was broken when I heard the news of J’s suicide last week.

Not all prayers are said in houses of worship or in front of altars. This article is my prayer, honest and humble, to all those in positions of power to effect change. I pray that we repeal Section 309 of the Penal Code at the earliest so that thousands of Malaysians may be able to come out of their nervous cocoons and seek the medical attention that they so richly deserve.

Rest in peace, J. - FMT

Dr Venugopal Balchand is chairman, Focus Group on Decriminalisation of Attempted Suicides, National Coalition For Mental Wellbeing (NCMW).

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.