Our 13th prompt comes from AK. They ask:
What are your views regarding the criminalization of attempted suicide? Shouldn’t anyone choose if they want to die?
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AK,
According to the Kenyan Penal Code (Cap. 63 of the Laws of Kenya) section 226: “Any person who attempts to kill himself is guilty of a misdemeanour.” Since there is no penalty specified, one gets up to two years in prison, a fine, or both. This applies unless one is insane (in Kenya, one is presumed to be of sound mind unless proven otherwise), or of immature age.
This has always puzzled me. A person tries to kill themselves, probably due to mental illness or being overwhelmed by their current circumstances, so you send them to jail, where conditions are so poor that they are likely to try again and succeed. Why? Because you want to make an example of them and prevent others from doing the same. This is definitely not done out of concern – it is punitive and counter-productive.
I believe this approach has its roots in our general approach to suicide as a country – it is a taboo. Which is why when people take their lives, it is not written in their obituaries, or mentioned in their eulogies. People say that their loved ones slipped and fell in the shower, or died of a sudden illness. When one survives a suicide attempt, this shame still hovers over them and their family like a cloud.
Abrahamic religions (Christianity and Islam specifically) are the most practiced in Kenya, and in all of them, one’s life belongs to God, therefore suicide is a sin which damns you to hell for eternity. We may say that we are a secular state in our constitution, but we all know that at the moment, this is a cute joke. I believe that religion informs this callous law, given that it was written by our sanctimonious colonizers.
Say the person who attempted suicide is mentally ill – wouldn’t a better move be to ensure that they have access to resources and people that will help them get better? Yet this is difficult due to the attitude we have towards mental illness (I co-published an ebook on this). We believe that it is a figment of the imaginations of those who suffer from it, and do not dedicate adequate personnel and resources to helping people who are mentally ill.
Even after one survives a suicide attempt, fear of arrest may hinder one from seeking support. Add to this the ostracism from people who just cannot understand why one would try to kill themselves. Which of course makes one more likely to attempt suicide again. What, really, are we trying to achieve with this law?
I believe attempted suicide should be decriminalized. Its criminalization is a band aid solution that does not deal with the deeper problem. Why does the person want to take their life? Perhaps they are mentally ill. In which case mental health should be prioritized, especially since mental illness cases have been on the rise.
Perhaps it is because they find themselves in a predicament that seems impossible, and they have no social support structures. In which case social services should be a priority – access to affordable, quality public healthcare and education, access to well-maintained public parks and recreational facilities, opportunities for employment and personal growth, as well as a focus on building social support structures outside of churches/mosques/temples.
All these interventions would require a long term approach that places human well-being and dignity at the centre of what we do as a state. Yet, this is Kenya, where human beings remain as disposable as ever.
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This post is part of a daily writing experiment that I’m running for a year. I’d love it if you took part! ?