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Stop criminalising attempted suicide, gov't told

The Malaysia Crime Prevention Foundation (MCPF) has urged the government to review the existing laws so as not to criminalise those who attempt suicide.

MCPF senior vice-chairperson Lee Lam Thye noted that affected persons are not criminals, but may be suffering from mental illnesses, such as depression.

“The government should seriously consider abolishing Section 309 of the Penal Code (which criminalises suicide), since people who attempt suicide due to mental illness must be given psychiatric treatment and rehabilitation.

“Criminalising depressed persons or those who are mentally sick is inhumane, unthinkable and unacceptable,” he said in a statement today.

Lee, who also sits on the Mental Health Promotion Advisory Council, said that the government and insurance companies must play their role by ensuring that medical insurance coverage could be extended to include psychiatric disorders.

He further said that barriers should be added to stop people from jumping off a building and they should also be considered as a feature in the design of new structures.

It was reported yesterday that a man had threatened to jump from the sixth floor of a shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur before being talked out of it.

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