Biting the dust: Jordan's suicide law only adds insult to injury

Suicide in Jordan
7 min read

With the prevalence of conflict and economic crisis in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, it is not surprising to find that mental health issues are common with 30%  reporting to suffer from depression.

With insufficient resources to provide mental health and psychosocial support services (MHPSS) in the region, mental health disorders are largely left untreated, explaining Jordan’s spike in suicides over recent years.

The International Medical Corps (IMC), an organisation specialising in health, protection, and MHPSS, reported that there were 593 attempted suicides and 143 suicides in 2021 compared to 116 suicides in 2019.

"There are clear gaps in the integration of programmes related to protection, domestic violence, gender-based violence, and programmes for people with disabilities. Beyond that, there are considerable weaknesses in managing existing human resources due to the absence of a coordinated national strategy and database"

The IMC finds that 80% of suicide cases in Jordan are due to depression with numerous contributing factors, including the COVID-19 pandemic and the unemployment rate soaring to nearly 25%.

But the Jordanian Parliament’s recent passing of a new law criminalising suicide attempts fails to resolve the issue. The new law inflicts a six-month prison sentence and a $140 fine on those attempting suicide, motivating those to ensure their death rather than survive and face punishment.

The new law came as a surprise to medical professionals and international non-governmental organisations (INGOs) since it was clear that no mental health or psychosocial specialists had been consulted.

INGOs and advocates are speaking out against this new law, including Raed, a Jordanian university student and advocate for mental health awareness.

Raed publically shared about his mental health journey at IMCs’ recent event, See Us Through Our Eyes, which aimed to raise awareness among youth and various decision-makers, including Parliament members, Ministry officials, and directors of INGOs.

Since its construction, Amman's Abdoun bridge has been an unfortunately popular place for suicide [Getty Images]
Since its construction, Amman's Abdoun bridge has been an unfortunately popular place for suicide [Getty Images]

In his speech, Raed shared about overcoming depression and anxiety through psychotherapy and medication, making it a rare moment for someone in the region to be so vocal about their mental health struggles.

Raed’s speech went further by questioning politicians’ decision to pass this new law by explaining the negative implications it will have, “Decision-makers and those of the upper class are not immune to mental health disorders. This new law sends a clear message, especially to the youth, that if you try to kill yourself, make sure you get it right the first time or we will throw you in jail. This law could affect your sons and daughters who may be suffering from mental disorders.”

He continued that after serving a prison sentence, suicide attempters will leave feeling more depressed, shunned by their community, and unable to find employment opportunities.

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Raed finds that the new law is rooted in the stigmatisation of mental health throughout the region discouraging most from even discussing the topic. “Many people in Jordan associate mental health disorders with ‘character traits’ leading to a lack of diagnosis and treatment. Those suffering from mental disorders are usually chastised for lacking commitment to their religion.”

But Raed also finds that classist attitudes within Jordanian society determine who is ‘worthy’ of MHPSS, “In Jordan, mental health is stigmatised as being for lower socio-economic groups, whereas it is a ‘trend’ for the wealthy who can seek expensive services.

"This leads the middle class to neglect their mental health to avoid association with lower social status.”

Economic status also determines which treatment options are available to patients, with the private sector providing high-end services at unaffordable rates and the public sector marking patients’ records after seeking services. Because of this, Raed feared that having his record permanently marked would jeopardise his future education and employment opportunities, leading him to seek services through INGOs.

There are currently 33 INGOs in Jordan providing MHPSS and coordinating through the MHPSS working group, including IMC, which is a member of the National Technical Mental Health Committee coordinated by the Ministry of Health.

IMC’s Jordan Country Director, Dr Ahmad Bawaneh, shares that accessibility to mental health services in Jordan is extremely limited with the number of psychiatrists not exceeding two per one hundred thousand citizens in Jordan.

“There are clear gaps in the integration of programmes related to protection, domestic violence, gender-based violence, and programmes for people with disabilities. Beyond that, there are considerable weaknesses in managing existing human resources due to the absence of a coordinated national strategy and database for specialized MHPSS services.”

Dr Bawaneh explains that all of these elements are essential in preventing mental health disorders from developing at a young age, “Mental health is like any physical illness in that it is preventative. If the country had been investing in social protection, youth engagement, teacher and social workers’ capacity building, and awareness campaigns then there would be less mental illness within our communities and suicides would be less prevalent.”

"The IMC finds that 80% of suicide cases in Jordan are due to depression with numerous contributing factors, including the COVID-19 pandemic and the unemployment rate soaring to nearly 25%"

He explains that the MHPSS working groups’ discussions are nothing new to the country as the Committee has been meeting since the influx of Iraqi refugees in 2003. IMC’s programmes currently reach 8,000 beneficiaries with most being refugees living within camp settings throughout the country.

According to the United Nations, there are 760,000 officially registered refugees, predominately from Syria, residing in Jordan.

Although refugees commonly face depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and anxiety after fleeing war and persecution, Dr Bawaneh does not believe that suicides are occurring more frequently amongst refugees, but are rather more reported on since INGOs have greater insight into refugee communities.

However, INGOs providing MHPSS have limited capacities forcing them to accept cases that fit their criteria, with a majority prioritizing refugees due to funding obligations.

For this reason, governmental investment in MHPSS programmes and institutions is vital in addressing mental health illnesses amongst the Jordanian population. But due to this new law, INGOs will have to develop new methods to mitigate MHPSS casework.

Dr Bawaneh describes, “Just recently a young woman tried committing suicide and our staff was unsure how to document her case. Our staff worried they would be held responsible for providing a legal testimony in court.”

Mental health service providers will now have to conduct their MHPSS services more cautiously, especially when reporting mental health cases.

Rather than creating detrimental laws, Raed encourages decision-makers to seek other solutions such as investing in institutions and therapists, establishing proper policies that measure quality services within the public and private sphere, and discussing mental health on television networks and within education systems to raise awareness.

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Along with building capacities within the health sector, Dr Bawaneh encourages government officials to not view the increasing suicide rate as a media issue, as suicides have garnered much attention in recent years creating a public image issue for the country, “In this regard, the new law will achieve the government’s goal of reducing the suicide rate in 2023. Not because suicides are lessening, but rather because they will go unreported due to families fearing the law.”

This punishment of suicide attempters by the Jordanian government goes to show the lack of knowledge and understanding when it comes to mental health disorders.

Globally, many political leaders and citizens do not consider mental health illness a medical issue since it is not a physical illness like cancer or COVID.

For this reason, Raed believes shedding light on this issue is imperative, “We need to be raising more awareness within our local communities, but also to our government officials so that suicide attempters are not condemned by society but are rather recognized as those in need of support.”

Lara Bellone d’Altavilla works in the humanitarian field and has published works across various platforms covering social justice issues in the Middle East. She is the founder and content writer for GRLبنت and co-founder of Guardians of Equality Movement (GEM).

Follow her on Twitter: @LaraBellone