Government urged to decriminalise suicide, as the World marks Suicide Day

Human rights campaigners and public health practitioners have been urged to put pressure on government to decriminalise suicide.

This has become necessary since various calls in the past for the decriminalisation of suicide have not yielded the desired result.

A medical practitioner at New Crystal Health Services Dr. Michael Ohene Tawiah Akonor who is making this call, said criminalizing suicide will only deter people who have attempted suicide to seek professional help. He said the tendency, therefore, for such people to attempt it again and succeed is high and will therefore erase any gains made towards reducing it.

Dr Akonor made the call ahead of the World Suicide Prevention Day which falls Tuesday, September 10 every year.

Section 57 (2) of Ghana's Criminal Code, 1960 (Act 29) states that "whoever attempts to commit suicide shall be guilty of a misdemeanour."

Dr Akornor, however, noted that such a law will only push people to the limit since they know that they could be jailed in a failed suicide attempt.

While urging government to decriminalise suicide, Dr Akonor, also wants colleague medical practitioners to join in the fight against suicide deaths.

He challenged medical professionals to be extra vigilant when treating patients with conditions such as terminal illness, acute stress reaction and post-traumatic stress depression since they are at a higher risk of contemplating and committing suicide. He said such patients should be shown extra love and care and referred to psychiatrists and clinical psychologists for specialist treatment.

Dr Akonor who is also the Director in charge of the Tema Branch of the New Crystal Hospitals noted that suicide is generally a mental health issue that can best be addressed by the mental health institutions in the country.

He said there was the need for them to do collaborative research so they can identify specific suicide tendencies and patterns to which targeted solutions can be offered.

This year's celebration is on the theme, “Stigma: A major barrier to suicide prevention”. And speaking to it, Dr Akonor said a lot of people do not necessarily commit suicide because of an embarrassing situation, condition or circumstance, but rather because of the stigmatisation that they suffer.

He cited HIV/AIDS as one of the most common examples. He explained further that the availability of antiretroviral drugs for use by HIV/AIDS patients now makes it possible for them to live normal lives.

However, he said, when word gets out about their status, some people are not able to endure the stigmatisation that follow and therefore see death as the only way out.

Dr Akonor said this and other instances of stigmatisation are contributing to the reported high incidences of suicide in recent times. He therefore called on the society to be more tolerant and show more love and care to people with special challenges and uncommon medical conditions.

He also suggested the creation of helplines as a way of addressing suicide. Globally, helplines are increasingly being recognised as vital components of a suicide prevention strategy. Their effectiveness lies in the offer of accessible, convenient, and confidential support to people who are in crisis. He said having helplines can therefore attract suicidal persons to reach out for help at the most critical time and thus save their lives.