MORE NEEDED TO ADDRESS MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES
Many adolescents think suicide can solve their problems because they can’t handle rejection
THREE friends were busy scrolling their smartphones while waiting for breakfast to be served at a famous laksa Sarawak restaurant in Jalan Petanak, Kuching, last month.
One of them suddenly gasped in disbelief, “Chester Bennington died?” The other friend was muttering something as his eyes remain fixed on the smartphone, probably reading reports on the death of the lead singer of rock band Linkin Park.
The three were among millions of music lovers around the world who were shocked by the death of the 41-year-old musician, who committed suicide at a private residence in Los Angeles on July 21.
Bennington died on the birthday of his good friend fellow musician, Chris Cornell, who also committed suicide two months earlier. Both reportedly died by hanging.
Coincidentally, more than 500 delegates, comprising mental health experts and members of non-governmental organisations from 50 countries, were converging at the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching for the 29th World Congress of the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) as news of Bennington’s death spread.
Themed “Preventing Suicide: A Global Commitment, from Communities to Continents”, delegates deliberated on statistics on suicide cases as well as discussed comprehensive suicide prevention strategies.
According to World Health Organisation (WHO) statistics, almost 800,000 people die from suicide annually, which is equivalent to one death every 40 seconds. And for every person who dies by suicide, about 20 of their family and friends are affected. The most common methods of suicide include consuming pesticide, hanging and using firearms.
On the home front, an average 2,000 people die by suicide every year. Although suicide rates in Malaysia are quite low compared with the global index, the issue should still be seriously looked at. Even more so when the latest National Health and Morbidity Survey found almost 30 per cent of the population have mental health problems.
Mental health disorders, including depression and anxiety, are contributors to suicide. Verbal and physical bullying and cyberbullying are also factors, pressuring the oppressed to commit suicide.
IASP president Ella Arensman admitted that the rapid growth of social media had become a bane for international bodies to intervene when someone was exposed to cyberbullying.
“I thought this negative phenomenon (cyberbullying) may not have entered countries in Africa, but it was proven otherwise during my trip to Namibia recently.
“I have already seen the impact of some very negative social media exposures, as for example when people are being exposed and talk very graphically about suicide, which can be very contagious to young people,” she said.
Social media users, who deliberately push others to take their own lives, baffle many experts and pose a challenge to governments around the world.
“This is bigotry, but they still do it (influence others to commit suicide),” said psychiatry expert Professor Dr T. Maniam of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.
He said the perils of social media necessitated that every nation, including Malaysia, must come up with a mechanism to help people, especially adolescents, become more emotionally resilient.
This is because a significant number of adolescents in the country view suicide as an option to solving their problems as they are unable to handle rejection.
“This is because some of them perceive that life is like the Internet, and that they can get everything they wish with a click of a button,” said Malaysian Psychiatric Association president Professor Dr Nor Zuraida Zainal.
Although the number of suicide cases in Malaysia and Sarawak are relatively low, it is imperative for all parties to address the matter. Suicide cases not only inflict emotional pain on family members and friends, but also result in economic loss for the country.
The Sarawak government should be applauded for its immediate response to the call by WHO mental health and substance abuse director Shekhar Saxena to intensify efforts to reduce suicide cases.
Chief Minister Datuk Amar Abang Johari Abang Openg had announced an increase of five per cent in allocation for the State Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Development Ministry to carry out awareness campaigns on suicide prevention.
“I urge academicians and professionals to conduct more research on suicidal behaviour in Sarawak to give us a clearer picture of the problem,” he said.
Although the number of suicide cases in Malaysia and Sarawak are relatively low, it is imperative for all parties to address the matter. Suicide cases not only inflict emotional pain on family members and friends, but also result in economic loss for the country.