Law criminalising suicide attempt cruel Janet Ogundepo Leading psychiatrists and community health physicians have described the law that criminalises suicide attempts as cruel and uncompassionate, calling for its review to advance suicide prevention in Nigeria. They noted that Nigeria was among the 25 countries in the world where suicide attempt was a crime, noting that such a law was not indigenous to Nigeria or the African continent. The experts shared their views during a webinar titled “Community Mobilisation for Suicide Prevention” organised by the Nigeria Suicide Prevention Advocacy Working Group, hosted by Professor Taiwo Sheikh on Saturday.
According to the World Health Organisation, globally, suicide is the 10th leading cause of death with about 700-800 people dying by suicide each year, equating to one death every 40 seconds. In Nigeria, the Criminal Code Section 327 states that: “Any person who attempts to kill himself is guilty of a misdemeanour, and is liable to imprisonment for one year” while Section 231 of the Penal Code states, “Whoever attempts to commit suicide and does any act towards the commission of such offence, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year or with fine or with both.” Recently, the Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, Bright Edafe, confirmed that attempted suicide was still a punishable offence in Nigeria.
Edafe, who made this statement in response to online criticism of the arrest of a man in Abuja who attempted suicide, stated, “Well, the law does not have a place for pity or emotions, the law is clear, suicide itself is not an offence, but an attempted suicide is an offence that attracts one year of imprisonment if found guilty.” Sheikh, a professor of psychiatry, stated that the law did not recognise nor seem to address the social determinants of suicide. The don decried the prevailing suicide rates across the African continent, stating that over 80 per cent of deaths that result from suicide come from low-and-middle-income countries of the world.
“The prevailing average suicide rate on the continent of Africa is more than the global average rate. Also, the prevailing average rate of suicide among young people in Africa is far higher than the global rate of suicide death among young people. “Globally, suicide is the fourth leading cause of death among young people between the ages of 15 and 29.
In Africa, it is the second leading cause of death among that age group and the average in Africa is about 15.4 per 100,000 people. “Male suicide on the continent of Africa is the highest in the world.
We average about 18 per 100,000 people on the continent of Africa. So we can see that suicide is a huge risk,” he said. Continuing, the advocate for reshaping Africa’s approach to mental health and suicide prevention, said, “About 25 countries in the world today have laws that criminalise suicide attempts and probably another 20 or 25 countries have laws that do not state clearly whether suicide is a crime or not.
“But definitely, it affects the way people also attend to suicide attempts. Most of the countries among these 25 countries that still criminalise suicide are within the Commonwealth countries of the world. And 11 of those countries are on the continent of Africa.
Nigeria is among those 11 countries where suicide attempts remain a crime.” The don strongly called for a change to the law and the development of a comprehensive and compassionate suicide prevention law that would address the social determinants of suicide. “That law does not recognise that suicide is preventable.
That law does not recognise the social determinants of suicide and it doesn’t in any way seem to address the social determinants of suicide. That law is not compassionate, that law is cruel. It is important that we look at ways of removing that law from our legacy,” Sheikh asserted.
In her presentation, a professor of Community Medicine at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Anambra State, Obiageli Emelumadu, emphasised the importance of community mobilisation in suicide prevention in Nigeria. She stressed that such efforts are vital for raising awareness, reducing stigma, and establishing support systems that can help prevent suicidal thoughts and behaviours. “It also involves building relationships, fostering communications, and leveraging resources to address issues.
Resources could be financial resources, material resources, and the individuals within the communities. So that issues within that community are addressed to the well-being. It allows them to tailor specific community needs that can lead to long-lasting support and impact,” Emelumadu said.
Citing statistics on the suicide rate in the United Kingdom, the don remarked that the leading causes were mental health issues, substance abuse and relationship problems. She added that in Nigeria, mental health challenges, substance abuse, conflict, and violence are the leading contributors to mental health crises. The Community Medicine expert called for intensified advocacy, strengthened mental health services, and efforts to lobby lawmakers.
She also emphasised the need to engage the media, community leaders, and members to achieve meaningful progress in suicide prevention. Speaking on the impact of the media on the projection of mental health issues and suicide prevention, the Acting Editor of PUNCH Healthwise, Mrs Angela Onwuzoo, stated that since the media was the vehicle for awareness and sensitisation, it played a crucial role in the prevention of suicide. She stated that although the advent of the internet has brought about a convergence between traditional and social media, the mainstream media was suitable for the positioning of awareness since it provided ethical reporting.
Onwuzoo further decried the low reportage of mental health, stating that many reporters were unaware of issues surrounding mental health. “We had a very massive stigma for HIV but through media reportage, that stigma today is reduced. In 2020, when we had the COVID-19 outbreak, the issue of vaccination was a problem and the media demystified the conspiracy theories around it and addressed the misconceptions.
So, the same approach, when deployed by the media, will make suicide prevention a priority. “But that would not happen unless the stakeholders engage with the media. So far, we don’t have that robust engagement and collaboration as it is still a one-off thing.
Most times, we get to hear about mental health when it is World Mental Health Day. “The media is a powerful tool, we have the capacity, resources and wherewithal but we need that engagement,” the editor said. She urged stakeholders to engage the media through training sessions and workshops, as well as advocacy visits to media houses, to promote more extensive coverage of mental health issues in the country.
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