Nazia Wahab :
According to a recent news paper report, a student had died after falling from university building in Dhaka’s Green Road area. University authorities and police suspect it was a case of suicide as the student was seen, in CCTV footage, jumping off the sixth floor of the nine-storey building. Another suicidal incident was reported that another student in Savar has died after falling from a university building recently. According to statistics regarding the suicide incidents, around 101 students in Bangladesh committed suicide in 2021.
However, there may be multiple factors working behind suicide. In fact, there are many reasons for the deteriorating situation of mental health in Bangladesh, including economic, social and psychological aspects. It is true that mental health is a less attended issue in Bangladesh. Covid-19 has a significant impact on the mental health situation around the world. It also affects Bangladesh. Now is the time to tackle this as a high-priority issue.
The Bangladesh Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MOHFW) sponsored the Bangladesh Mental Health Act to replace the outdated Indian Lunacy Act of 1912. The new legislation defines government-sponsored health care benefits, including mental health care, that are comprehensive across population groups and spread throughout the country. The Mental Health Act makes provisions for involuntary admission and treatment. The Mental Health Act was passed by the national Parliament in 2018.
In particular, According to section 5 of this Act, there should be a committee to review and monitor the mental health issues. The committee will consist of DC, Assistant Director, District Social welfare Office, District officer, Female Affairs, a mental health Specialist of psychologist and Civil surgeon. Section 6 talks about the rights of the person suffering from the mental health issues. Section 7 and 17 says establishment of mental hospital to any places. Section 8 says about license to establish the hospital. Section 9 talks about inspection and forfeiture the property of illegal activity that runs unruly hospital.
According to section 10 if any person runs a hospital by illegal way he will be fined 5 Lac up to 20 lakh taka. Section 15 talks about the procedure of admission to the mental hospital if any person is accused of any criminal offence. According to section 20 any family member can apply to the court for investigation of finding out the mental health situation. Section 21 talks about the guardianship of a mentally disordered person. His father or mother can be his legal guardian. Section 22 says about how the property of a mentally disordered person will be maintained. During his illness his legal guardian or his relatives will take care of his personal belongings or properties. Section 23 of the Act inflicts stringent punishments for medical practitioner, imprisonment for 3 years or fine up to TK 5 lakh or both, for purposefully issuing false certificates of mental health and for carelessness or mismanagement during the treatment of patients. Section 25 talks about the power of mobile court to take cognizance of the offences under this Act. Section 26 talks about the nature of the offences done by any company. A registered company can be penalized.
The good thing about the 2018 Mental Health Act is that it can impose severe penalties in some situations. The law guarantees strict penalties for providers of counterfeit metal health certificates. Submitting a false medical certificate is certainly a serious offense, and such unethical practices sometimes occur. It is also worth noting that in the legal system, a certificate of madness has many consequences, including interference with inheritance rights, divorce, child custody and criminal proceedings. Therefore, reducing the penalty for fake certificates is not a wise solution. Another powerful provision in the law is that psychiatric hospitals provide for the separation of children and adolescents from adults. However, in reality, this provision is not implemented in Bangladesh.
One of the biggest gaps in the law is that it does not provide for the establishment of community-specific mental hospitals. In this regard, there is a tendency to set up most mental hospitals in the city of Dhaka or in metropolitan areas. As a result, rural people do not receive adequate mental health facilities.
In addition, Article 6 of the law dealt with the rights of those who suffer from mental health problems. These rights should be guaranteed through the creation of rules. The latest WHO report points out that Bangladesh does not have a human rights review committee to review routine human rights abuses in people with mental illness. Mental health remains an unpopular topic in Bangladesh. It is often considered supernatural or paranormal. Some people believe it an evil eye. They do not look at the mental problem from a scientific point of view. Even the urban people also don’t think it’s a disease to be cured. What can we do about this in this situation?
First and foremost, we need to educate people about mental health. We can include it in our curriculum to ensure an awareness program in every step of our lives. You can then set up specific hospitals or departments within the hospital. You need to have an easily accessible treatment or support system. Fourth, the government can issue strict rules and guidelines for implementing the 2018 Mental Health Act. Finally, the government can create an app or service center for the counseling to ensure this service.
(Nazia Wahab is Assistant Professor, Department of Law and Human Rights, University of Asia Pacific).
