KUCHING: Malaysia ranks at number 46 for suicides, with 1,734 cases reported in 2019.
Dorge Rajah, online editor of New Sarawak Tribune, said there were over 2,000 suicide cases in the country in the past four years.
“Suicides are nothing new, these have been there for thousands of years. It is because people are still shy or ashamed to talk about them here.
“With the increasing numbers of suicide cases in Sarawak, it has become a worrying matter for us,” he said when presenting his topic on “Safe Reporting Guidelines for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention” during the forum on “Social Media, Mental Health and Suicide, Lowering the Risks” organised by the Mental Health Association of Sarawak (MHAS) and Befrienders Kuching and held at the Sarawak Islamic Information Centre (IIC) yesterday.
Dorge said, “The media do play their part and role when it comes to reporting suicides.
“Some media, be it printed or online, would follow guidelines when it comes to reporting and showing images of suicide. Some, however, just put out the images without blurring them just to sell their papers.
“But at the end of the day, when the news is being shared online and on the social media, it has a negative impact on people with suicidal tendencies as vulnerable younger generations tend to copycat the methods,” he said.
Dorge added that was why it was important for the media to focus on how to create awareness on mental health and write about success stories of those recovering from mental illness.
“It is important to provide accurate information, educate the public about facts of suicide prevention without the myths and report stories coping with life stressors, suicidal thoughts and places where they could get help,” he stressed.
Quoting former president Abraham Lincoln who said, “I’m a success today because I had a friend who believes in me, and I didn’t have the heart to let him down”, Dorge said people must know that suicide was not always the way to end things and there were people out there who could offer help.
Meanwhile, Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), Sarawak Regional Office deputy director Ahmad Bakhtiar Hamdan, who talked about “Global Best Internet Practices on Protecting People at Risk of Suicide – How to Move Forward In Malaysia”, said the internet was a two-edged sword which could positively or negatively influence youths.
“The concern we have now is not only about suicides but the internet addiction among youths,” he said.
Ahmad said in 2016, 76.9 per cent (24.5 million) of Malaysia’s population used the Internet.
“Out of the number, 1.8 million were children below 18 and schoolchildren go online 21 hours per week,” he added.
He said because the internet was borderless, anyone could access it and exploit it to source for victims.
“We received many complaints pertaining to ex boyfriends who intend to threaten the girls by posting nude pictures of them. This can lead to mental breakdown,” he shared.
Ahmad said MCMC could address complaints about offensive contents in the Internet under the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (Act 588).
“MCMC does not monitor every Facebook profile, or Youtube content unless we receive a report that an account shares obscene, indecent contents, false or misleading news, offensive or menacing contents. Then the enforcement will investigate,” he said.
Those who come across any offensive online content can report it to http://aduan.skmm.gov.my/.
Among those present at the forum were Mental Health Association of Sarawak (MHAS) chairperson Dr Gan Chee Kuan, Sarawak General Hospital (SGH) Department of Psychiatry Medical Officer Dr Ting Chuong Hock, Hospital Sentosa director Dr Rosliwati Md Yusoff and members of the public.
