KUALA LUMPUR – Bangi MP Syahredzan Johan has called on Malaysians to deal with self-harm and attempted suicide cases with a more rehabilitative approach instead of focusing on meting out punishment on the persons involved.
Pointing to Dewan Negara’s recent approval of the Mental Health (Amendment) Bill 2023 amendments that now decriminalise attempted suicide, the DAP legislator remarked that it is high time for society to cease negative viewpoints on the issue.
“Parliament has passed the amendments to decriminalise attempted suicide.
“This is a clear signal that society and the state are to help those with mental health issues, not punish them,” he said.
“Yes, the law has changed, but the task ahead is to change society’s approach to these issues.
“There is no point in changing the law if the way we approach mental health issues remains the same. (The) government must lead the way,” he added.
Syahredzan was commenting on a social media post highlighting an unnamed school that allegedly conducted a spot check to identify students with self-harm scars.
The user claimed that the school’s student affairs senior assistant reprimanded those who were found with scars, and purportedly threatened them with suspension if they continued to inflict more injuries on themselves.
The user added that the senior assistant had captured images of the scars and circulated them in a Telegram group, where participants allegedly opined that the students were “attention seekers”.
Last week, the Dewan Negara passed the third and final bill on the Mental Health (Amendment) Bill 2023, set to decriminalise attempted suicide, alongside the Penal Code (Amendment) Bill (No. 2) 2023 and Criminal Procedure Code (Amendment) Bill (No. 2) 2023.
Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Ramkarpal Singh had said that this amendment had received approval from local Islamic authorities.
He also explained that a person cannot be charged for attempted suicide, as the moratorium on enforcing Section 309 of the Penal Code is still in effect, but abetting suicide attempts is still an offence.
Teachers: potential first responders?
Meanwhile, Muda deputy president Amira Aisya Abd Aziz also chimed in with similar sentiments, reiterating that legal reform alone cannot shift society’s perception towards self-harm.
As such, she urged the Education Ministry to emulate other nations’ measures of ensuring that teachers are trained as first responders and providing students with the assistance they need.
“It is more important to protect them than to demonise them, especially in schools, where students are at their most vulnerable age,” she said.
“Often, teachers are the first people who see suicidal tendencies in teenagers…they need to have proper skills, empathy, and understanding in reacting to such situations,” she added. – The Vibes, June 28, 2023
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