The suicide mission

By: Pritibha

Recently, there was an issue on a Facebook (FB) page named The Comedy Machas and Machis (CMM) about a suicide.

This page is profoundly known for highlights of ‘gangsters’ found in FB of Malaysian Indian ethnicity as well as highlighting issues of misbehaviour of social networkers in and out of social networking websites.

This suicide case involved a young adult who sent death threats to his ex-girlfriend after she had ended the relationship.

The girl apparently ended their relationship because he did not have stable career and their family objected to the relationship.

Photos of him strangling himself and putting a knife at his neck were sent to his ex-girlfriend as a threat; wanting her to get back with him.

Upon sending those death threats, the young adult ended his life by committing suicide.

In that spare moment of heartbreak and overwhelmed emotions, the young adult allowed himself to walk into a wrong decision where he could have managed it with help.

Many cases of suicide are not brought to light due to confidentiality as committing suicide has remained as an act of shame according to society.

Some families and associates of suicide victims feel it is an embarrassment that tarnishes pride and dignity.

“The family members of the deceased refused to publish the obituary in the newspapers”, said Vimal Arumugam, 24, who lost his cousin to suicide.

A small survey was conducted among young adults about suicide and its ambiguous reasons behind it.

Individuals commit suicide mainly due to stress, lack of supportive relationship and left with no option was what Sharene Silva, 22, had to say from her point of view of why individuals chose this act of taking their own lives.

 A suicide attempt is an offence according to Malaysia law under Section 309 of the Penal Code. The penalties are harsh but yet some individuals still opt to this offence.

Mostly, individuals that attempt suicide feel that committing suicide is the only way of solving their problem and to end their sufferings that is being faced.

Sometimes, the battle of a person is going through internally is very extreme - suicide is opt to as a form of relief. 

Depression can lead to hasty decisions, was what Jaana, 25, felt is behind someone who is suicidal.

Logen, a 24 year old medical student feels that a lack of will power and loss of hope can trigger a person to have suicidal thoughts.

“I wish I had done something to help her, and she would be still here now”, are the words that Kanagaasingam said. Kanagaasingam lost his eldest sister who took her own life two years ago.

“Till today, I feel guilty that I have made her felt that she couldn’t turn to me when she had a problem with her marriage, leaving her to end her life”, said Verasingam Krishnasamy, 57, a father whom expressed his devastation about his daughter’s lost.

Suicide does not only affect the victim but also the family and friends of the victim.

Individuals tend to forget about the people around them and that there is help available when they need.  

Instead, individuals take things into their own hands which end in suicide.

In the other hand, some individuals feel it is not wrong to end their sufferings by suicide .

Katherine Emmanuel, 27, survived a suicide attempt two years back. “I just wanted a way out, because I suffered in silence and did not see committing suicide as a wrong decision”, said Katherine who suffered domestic violence from her husband.

“Everyone has the right and responsibility over their lives, and therefore I feel it is not totally wrong to commit suicide as I feel if you own the right the live, you also own the right to take your own live for a proper reason”, said Kavilan Gukacumaran, 22, whom attempted suicide once.

“Suicidal behaviours are a response to feeling negative emotions and suicide attempts typically reflect a belief that others will be better off following the suicide”, said Shankar Thiruchelvan, a counselling psychologist in practice.

“Self-harming or suicidal behaviour is common among patients of Borderline Personality Disorder, an emotionally unstable personality disorder where the affected are most likely to have suicidal behaviour and thoughts”, said Shankar.

A question that had been asked in the survey is “If you happen to know someone who is capable of committing suicide, what will you do?”

Nikesh Nair, 20, said “I would personally sit with him or her and make sure they speak their problems and do my very best to help them settle their problem and take out the idea of committing suicide from their mind.”

According to Priya Dashini, “Finding out what is the issue that they are dealing with and getting the right help for them to deal with it effectively”, is her way of managing someone who is capable of suicide.

Therapies, counselling sessions, moral support from family and friends are crucial in helping eradicate suicides in society.

Likewise, there are NGO’s such as Befrienders that provide services such as counselling and ‘befriending’, where individuals can seek help when they need someone to hear them out.

Befrienders have not only provided service through the phone but have also provided face-to-face sessions where individuals can walk in for counselling.

Nevertheless, society should start looking at the big picture instead of demeaning the person for being weak.

Not only physical health, but the well-being of mental health should be given importance as well.

Although the thought of committing suicide should never be an option, it remains subjective as every individual have different perspectives and ways of handling their own despairs.