Protest Suicide in South Asia: Cases and Literature Review

Abstract

Background: The phenomenon of protest suicide has been poorly studied in South Asia. We aimed to report and analyse events of protest suicidality in South Asian countries.

Methods: We searched for media reports and made personal communications to identify the protest suicide and noted cases in South Asia.  

Results: Our study identified 6 notable protest suicide events (Bangladesh and India two each; Nepal and Pakistan one each) through media reports and personal communications from 2012 to 2023. There were suicidal attempts in the group to protest the oppression. Self-immolation was the most common method in South Asia. Suicide attempts were made in highly important public places with media attention like the National Press Club, and previous low-intensity attempts/measures were performed before the final attempt. Media plays a fundamental role in preventing widespread copy-cat suicide, mental health professionals have roles in postvention as the persons may not have psychiatric disorders. 

Conclusion: Protest suicide indicates the role of a wide range of ecological factors like social justice and human rights in suicide prevention.