Men hanging in silence

Today is World’s Suicide Prevention Day, a  call on everyone to start the conversation and raise awareness about the neglected crisis. Our Staff Writer CHIKONDI MARSHALL explores why it is important to change the narrative.

Every year, suicide claims more than 700 000 lives globally, about four lives every three minutes.

Each episode has far-reaching emotional and socioeconomic impact on individuals and communities.

The Malawi Police Service reports a surge in suicide cases from 402 in 2022 to 527 last year. The majority of these were men, rising from 357 to 497.

The police recorded 281 suicides January to June this year, with 246 being men.

This calls for suicide awareness mostly targeting men.

However, Section 229 of the Penal Code criminalise suicide attempts. The offence inherited from Britain, which has since decriminalised “self-murder”, attracts two years imprisonment.

In 2023, Lilongwe South legislator Peter Dimba asked Parliament to repeal the law that does not consider suicide as a mental disorder requiring medical assistance.

The lawmaker argued suicidal people deserve mental health support, not punishment, and should be encouraged to seek counselling from trusted providers.

Deputy national police spokesperson Harry Namwaza attributes the rising suicide cases to debts, bankruptcies, relationships, family conflicts and substance abuse.

“Suicide is not a solution,” he says. “Let us embrace the culture of sharing our problems with others and seeking counselling. In our police formations, we have victim support units where you can seek advice.”

Suicide is considered a grave sin similar to murder by all religious groups in Malawi.

Most religious leaders, who are trusted to offer hope when life loses meaning, refuse to preside over suicide-related funerals.

The Reverend Samuel Idana of Mpachika CCAP Congregation in Blantyre invokes the first  commandment: Thy shalt not kill.

 “Life is so precious,” he says. “God created man in his image and with a purpose… If we turn against His will, it results in sinful behaviour such as suicidal thoughts. That’s why we partly participate in suicide funerals and leave the rest in God’s hands for his final judgment”.

Idana believes God gives an answer to every problem and “suicide is not an option”.

However, health psychologist Dr Sandra Jumbe, from Millennium University, says suicide mostly happens when stress and health issues make a person in despair feel completely hopeless.

She attributes the negativity and stigma to low awareness and myths that people who attempt suicide want to die.

“This is not true,” says Jumbe. “Most of the suicidal do not actually want to die; they just want a stop to the situation they’re in. It’s a call for help.”

Jumbe’s early research focused on gender differences in depression revealed most men commit suicide due to communication barriers. 

She narrates: “I wanted to know why women seemed to suffer more from depression than men.

“However, the findings showed men and women may suffer mental illnesses similarly, but women will more likely say it and seek help when they are suffering. Men are likely to suffer in silence and keep quiet”.

Concurring, mental health counsellor Charity Kanyoza says most suicides are triggered by financial hardship, low self-esteem and marriage problems such as infidelity, sexually transmitted infections and separation.

She says: “Throughout my career as a counselor, I’ve worked with many patients struggling with suicidal thoughts. For the vast majority recurring issues stem from relationship challenges and the consequences that follow.

“These relationships range from marriages and family ties to romantic relationships. Often, the distress comes from either regretting the outcomes of these situations or the fear of facing them. ”

Kanyoza says toxic masculinity, coupled with a feeling that men don’t cry, quest for self-reliance, domestic violence, childhood trauma and ego fuels their vulnerability to suicide

“For instance, a man may end up in stressing debts because it’s difficult to watch his children suffer from hunger while he is supposed to be the breadwinner,” he says.