Gov’t raises awareness following increase in suicide rate

Social Welfare Bureau (IAS) called on the public to pay more attention to the mental health of their friends and family and take on a protector role. 

This comes after a series of suicide cases have been recently reported.

“IAS is very concerned about the recent troubling incidents, and expresses its sorrow and regret for the deceased, as well as its condolences to the families concerned,” the bureau said. 

“If you find upsetting posts from friends and relatives on social media platforms, you should not leave hurtful or reproachful messages to avoid irreversibly harmful effects on people facing low periods in their lives. Messages of care, comfort, understanding, support, encouragement, and cheer can help people in adversity to turn their lives around and overcome their difficulties,” IAS added.

The Judiciary Police (PJ) issued an alert Friday that a number of harmful posts have appeared on social media platforms recently, creating the illusion of suicide attempts and encouraging others to follow or join in, thus increasing the likelihood of people in emotional distress taking their own lives.

PJ said that such posts are an offence under Article 295 of the Penal Code, “misuse and falsification of danger signals.”

Anyone who misuses the signal or call of an alarm, or the signal or call for help, or creates a false impression that someone is in need of help due to a disaster, danger or collective distress is liable to imprisonment of up to one year or a fine of up to 120 days, PJ explained. 

PJ responded to the Times recently stating that between January and March 2022, there had been 28 cases of suicide, while the number of deaths due to individuals falling from heights was 11.

In 2021, covering the same period, authorities recorded a total of eight cases of suicide, along with three deaths due to falling, reaching an alarming increase of over 300%.

Caritas Macau Suicide Prevention Services’ Director Ng Lai Ieng revealed that last year the institute received about 12,000 calls, of which more than 300 were related to attempted suicide, which involved various reasons such as family circumstances and emotional states.

This year, the institute received more than 3,000 calls from January to March, of which more than 70 were related to attempted suicide, which is similar to last year’s figures.

She said that the suicide prevention services are mainly for people under emotional distress, and aim to serve as the front line of defense and protection against suicide.

According to IAS’ vice president Hon Wai, authorities following up on attempted suicides found that most cases involved mental and emotional distress and interpersonal difficulties, and were rarely due to environmental factors.