Of Suicides and Democracy
BY AISHA HASSAN BABA, OON
An old Latin legal term for suicide “Felo de se” (Felon on himself) paints a grim picture of eternal condemnation! Attitudes to suicide and suicidal behaviors have changed over time and at different times, in different places. In Nigeria, the Suicide Research and Prevention Initiative (SURPIN) which partners with the Association of Psychiatrists in Nigeria (APN), has found that about one-fifth of suicide cases seen at its affiliate institution are those aged 13-19 years of age and that the majority of the callers were aged 20-39 years, and 63.5% of them were having thoughts of suicide at the time of calling. 28.2% were students.
These are grim statistics highlighting the crisis point we have reached in Nigeria. As we commemorate 25 years of uninterrupted civilian governance, and for the purpose of my thoughts on the subject at hand, I will focus on our nation’s social development as it pertains to the promotion of social health in Nigeria. This social challenge is, in recent years, being stimulated by global and national concerns on the burden of mental health and mental illness on the society.
I am a strong proponent that the role of democracy is a foundational determinant of social health and on mental health in particular. Democracy should give every citizen of Nigeria the feelings of social inclusion and support. The repeal of the Lunacy Act 1958 is a starting point. Its provisions did not promote the mental health of Nigerians. The National Mental Health Act 2021 now places human rights protections on the front burner for those suffering from mental health conditions.
The National Suicide Prevention Strategic Framework 2023-2030 and the National Mental Health Policy 2023 provide roadmap for reducing the prevalence of suicide in Nigeria. The new law and policies shine the spotlight on access to mental health care and the rights of people living with mental illness…However, these lofty objectives cannot be attained so long as attempted suicide remains entrenched as a criminal offence in our statute books and resides within the provisions of section 327 of the Criminal code and section 231 of the Penal code. In this regard It is my fervent hope that within the parameter of the declared commitment of the Attorney General of the Federation last April in his support for the implementation of the FMOH laws and policies, there will be a corresponding commitment towards the decriminalization of attempted suicide in Nigeria to achieve the objectives of the Mental Health Act and its policies.
In March 2024, I was invited by Professor Taiwo Lateef Sheik, professor of Psychiatrist/Psychopharmacology, Ahmadu Bello University, to join the “Suicide prevention advocacy working group” platform as an advocate for suicide prevention in Nigeria along with 84 members selected from across different professional disciplines and social hierarchy across the country and the diaspora. In his welcoming statement, Professor Sheik stated: “The purpose of the advocacy platform is to deepen awareness about the scourge of suicide in our society, bring to the fore the futility of making suicide attempt a crime towards addressing the “ suicide crisis” ( especially among the youth) and pursue the decriminalization of attempted suicide in Nigeria” The group experience is reminiscent of my access to justice days as the Director General of the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria.
Up until 60 years ago suicide was a crime in England and Wales and people were persecuted and prosecuted for attempted suicide. Now it would be unthinkable to punish someone for attempting suicide because in 1961, the Suicide Act of the UK parliament decriminalized the act of attempted suicide. What an irony of history! The Lunacy Act of 1958 (as amended by the National Mental Health Act 2021 was the first mental health legislation in Nigeria) was a sad legacy of British colonial administration that foisted criminalization of attempted suicide in Nigeria. Nigeria is at a legislative reform crossroad where significant debate and advocacy, nationally and globally is championing the notion that criminalization of attempted suicide is retrogressive, calling for change in attitude that is no longer regarded as being relevant or is at odds with evidence-based prognosis that mental health assessment and support and not legal deterrent is needed.
In my long sojourn as a government legal practitioner in both state and federal ministries of justice, I do recognize the difficulties government faced and still faces in matters of law reform and repeal in criminal cases, the reform of which is predicated on moral or religious validation. The law is the law if it satisfies the formal requirement of validity though repugnant to the evidence- based assertions of those that advocate for change. Happily, the above personal observation is not in tandem with the current global and national advocacy ambassadors strategies that reflects and emphasizes that the true intentions of the clarion call to decriminalize the offence of attempted suicide, stem from the premise and recognition of the need of government to transfer responsibility for the control of a deviant behavior, from the criminal justice jurisdiction to a medical jurisdiction in the interest of establishing a more effective remedial intervention, prevention and support. In this regard, the engagement, and views of members of our national and state Assemblies, their collective stance on the decriminalization of attempted suicide must be elicited within their legislative competences as set out in the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
Their views are evidently mute!!
AISHA HASSAN BABA, OON A lawyer of over four decades, Ms. Aisha Hassan Baba, OON, has served in very senior and sensitive positions in both federal and state public service, notably as Deputy Director Public Prosecution, Director, Legal Services under the Federal Ministry of Justice, Federal Ministry of Education, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade & Investment, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Federal Legal Aid Council (now Commission), Executive Secretary, Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), and as the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Anambra State.
