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I had the opportunity of attending the launch of the suicide content guidelines at Bernama Star and I was left impressed at the scale and depth the guidelines went through.
Officiated by the Minister of Communications Fahmi Fadzil, the guideline is an expansive booklet covering a variety of topics relating to suicide such as topics to avoid to rephrasing of sentences to discourage potential imitation.
As explained in a Free Malaysia Today article, the guidelines released by Content Forum of Malaysia discourages detailed reporting as it can lead to imitation of the method by those who are struggling with mental health.
Additionally, the guidelines set a clear standard for ethical reporting and content sharing of such topics with aspects of avoiding sensational headlines and inclusion of support hotlines for mental health in the reports according to the New Straits Times.
Another key focus of the launch was the “Papageno Effect” which focuses on stories that have aspects of hope, recovery and more to reduce suicidal tendencies among individuals struggling with mental health.
The most impressive part aside from the clear guidelines announced was the amount of collaborators found within the development of the guideline. As found in the New Straits Times article, Content Forum had consulted a variety of bodies such as the Communication Ministry, Health Ministry, National Centre of Excellence for Mental Health (NCEMH) and individuals with lived experience.
The inclusion of individuals with lived experience strengthens the guidelines by including and strengthening the human aspect on reporting suicide related content.
This hard work put into crafting such a detailed and concise guideline did not go unnoticed by the international community. As reported by Bernama, the guideline had received positive feedback both locally and internationally and was even featured and presented at the International Association for Suicide Prevention 2025 World Congress in Vienna.
These guidelines are an incredible step in the right direction to ensuring the words utilised in reporting such cases does not cause any harm to readers who might be struggling with mental health.
Chan Kenn Jin (facestabber123@gmail.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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