LAW 2201: LAW IN SOCIETY

SUICIDE IN GUYANA:
A CHOICE BETWEEN
DEATH AND
IMPRISONMENT
EXAMINING THE INADEQUACY OF THE ARCHAIC LEGAL PROVISION OF
IMPRISONMENT FOR ATTEMPTED SUICIDES IN GUYANA

DATE: APRIL 10, 2018

DEPARTMENT OF LAW
FACULTY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES
UNIVERSITY OF GUYANA
 Table of Contents

List of Abbreviations i

List of Cases ii

List of Legislation iii

Introduction 1

Suicide in Guyana: A choice between

2
Death and Imprisonment

Conclusion 7

Bibliography 8
 List of Abbreviations

A-G – Attorney General

COAG – Criminal Law (Offences) Act of Guyana

NGOs – Non-Governmental Organizations

PAHO – Pan-American Health Organization

WHO – World Health Organization

i
 List of Cases

Meskell v CIE [1973] IR 121

Rathinam v Union of India (1994) AIR 1844

A-G of British Columbia v Astaforoff [1983] 6 WWR 322

Collymore v A-G of Trinidad and Tobago (1967) 12 WIR 5

R v Brown (1993) 2 WIR 556

ii
 List of Legislation

Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, Cap. 1:01

Laws of Guyana, Criminal Law (Offences) Act 1998, Cap. 8:01

Mental Health Ordinance of Guyana (1930)

iii
 INTRODUCTION

A 2012 Global Suicide Statistic reported that Guyana has the highest suicide rate in the
world1. This means that, For a country which has a population of less than 800,000, suicide is a
national epidemic. The law’s approach in curbing this problem is to criminalize suicide by
imprisoning the survivors for two years2. It is an examination of this legal provision which forms
the basis of the researcher’s discourse. Having being personally surrounded by acts of suicide, the
researcher is aware of not only the factors that would drive a person to this extreme decision but
also the consequences of this decision on the family of the individual.

Recently, there have been many initiatives in Guyana by both public and private
organizations to dispel the stigma attached to mental health issues which, if not addressed,
comprise the leading causes of suicide. It is, therefore, opportune to launch an investigation into
what the purpose of s 97, Cap. 8:01, Criminal Law (offences) Act of Guyana, hereinafter, COAG,
is, whether it has achieved this purpose or whether it needs to change to reflect the development
of contemporary Guyanese society in this area. The researcher will address these questions by
applying various jurisprudential theories to support her discourse.

1
Staff Editor, ‘ Guyana had world’s highest estimated suicide Rate in 2012 – PAHO/WHO’ Stabroek News (Guyana,
4 September, 2014)
2
s 97, Cap. 8:01, Criminal Law (Offences) Act of Guyana

1
 ‘Suicide in Guyana: A Choice between Death and Imprisonment’

Examining The Inadequacy Of The Archaic Legal Provision Of Imprisonment For

Attempted Suicides In Guyana

The sanctity of life is enshrined in art 138 (1) of the Constitution of Guyana as a
fundamental right3 as is the right to a happy and productive life4. Since every right has a
corresponding responsibility, these rights are no exceptions. But where does the responsibility lie?
Is it to avoid death indefinitely? Even to the wealthiest or most dexterous human being, this would
prove to be an impossible task. Or is it to guarantee a life that is happy and productive? Life
certainly does not come with guarantees. The researcher perceives art 138 (1) as endowing the
responsibility not to take positive acts which would prematurely end one’s life, that is, to commit
suicide. This interpretation of art 138 (1) is supported by s 97 of the COAG, which provides for
the criminalization of attempted suicides, that is, a punishment for being intentionally deprived of
one’s life. However, since death is inevitable and there is a right to live, should there not be a
corresponding right to choose the time and manner in which one dies? In essence, recognizing the
existence of a negative component in a positive right5?

Proponents of the natural law theory do not recognize this right. Both Plato and Aristotle
perceived the act of suicide as contrary to law and an abrogation of the duty owed to the State.
Though Plato recognizes that there are exceptions6 to the conclusion that the person who commits
suicide is cowardly and too delicate to cope with the intricacies of life, this conception is not much
unlike the social stigma attached to suicide in Guyana. Sociologist Émile Durkheim attributed
suicide to psychological as well as social factors7. Thus, where a person may be suffering from
mental health problems, these are exacerbated by discrimination which the World Health
Organization, hereinafter WHO, reported is prevalent in Guyana in the community, workplace,
education, judicial and even healthcare systems8. This data suggests that Plato should not have
exceptions to the general condemnation of suicide since persons who are ‘happy and productive’
in the truest sense would not attempt to end their lives as a means of recreation. A person is often
driven to commit suicide after experiencing severe emotional pain or vulnerability, therefore the
exceptional cases are actually what is the general reality, and instead of condemnation, the better
approach is intervention.

3
‘No person shall be deprived of his or her life intentionally save in execution of the sentence of a Court in respect
of an offence under the laws of Guyana of which he or she has been convicted.’ Article 138 (1), Constitution of the
Cooperative Republic of Guyana
4
‘Every person in Guyana is entitled to the basic right to a happy, creative and productive life, free from hunger,
ignorance and want. That right includes the fundamental rights and freedoms of the individual.’ Article 40,
Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana
5
In Meskell v CIE [1973] IR 121 the freedom of association was held to include the negative right of a freedom of
disassociation; and in Rathinam v Union of India (1994) AIR 1844, it was held that the right not to be deprived of
one’s life included the right to die.
6
Suicide is permissible where: (i) one is morally corrupted; (ii) where it is by Judicial order; (iii) where the person is
compelled by extreme and personal misfortune; (iv) due to participation in grossly unjust actions; Michael Cholbi,
‘Suicide’ in Edward Zalta (ed), The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford
University 2017) <https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2017/entries/suicide/> accessed 1 March 2018
7
Robert Jones, Emile Durkheim: An Introduction to Four Major Works (Sage Publications Inc 1986)
8
World Health Organization, Ministry of Health, ‘WHO – AIMS Report on Mental Health System in Guyana’ (World
Health Organization 2008) 5

2
 Hume stated that the duty towards the State and community is mutual so that the reciprocity
is broken whereby the State benefits from the person’s contribution to society at the expense of
their pain and suffering. In addition to exposing the bias of Plato and Aristotle which was centered
around the individual’s duty to the State, this contention of Hume is a solid rebuttal to the Thomist
view which dictated that the act of suicide breached one’s duty to God, since only he has the
prerogative to determine the duration of one’s existence; to the community; and to oneself. In
terms of the duty owed to God, one may question why God would give one the capacity to act
contrary to his will, for example fighting a disease to prolong life or to take one’s life, if it is not
permissible. Hume believed that the free will granted by God included the freedom to take own’s
life especially when it became unbearable9. For the latter two, Hume says that if a person’s
condition is so dire that he/she becomes a burden to society then suicide would be beneficial to
society and to oneself since it alleviates the pain and suffering. In A-G of British Columbia v
Astaforoff10, the Court acknowledged that though it had a duty to preserve the sanctity of life, that
duty did not include requiring the necessities of life to be forced upon someone against his/her
wishes.

Furthermore, in Rathinam v Union of India11, a division bench of the Supreme Court of

India held that art 21 of the Constitution of India which stated that no one should be intentionally
deprived of his life except by law, included the right to die and s 309 of the Indian Penal Code
which provided for the imprisonment of anyone who attempted suicide was unconstitutional.
Applied to Guyana, it can be argued that where art 40 of the Constitution provides for the
enjoyment of a happy and productive life and art 138 (1) provides against the intentional
deprivation of life, s 97 of COAG which forces an individual to continue living inspite of the pain
and suffering that he/she has to endure from his/her circumstances, will constitute an infringement
of the individual’s right to be happy and productive and by extension it infringes on the reciprocal
relationship between the State and the individual. The modern Libertarian perspective supports
this assertion as they advocate that an individual has autonomy over his/her body and thus, has the
right to dispose of life as he/she thinks is justifiable. Michael Cholbi, extends this view by stating
that humans have the right of determination, that is shaping their lives, so long as it does not harm
others12. Even Utilitarian principles which generally prohibit the destruction of life, except where
it will not undermine the public sense of security,13 accepts Suicide and attempted suicides as
exceptions to this rule since the decision to end one’s life rests upon the individual and does not
pose a threat to society.

Instead of using these points to promote one’s right to commit suicide, the researcher seeks
instead to assert that where a person is suffering from mental health problems to the extent that
he/she has become dysfunctional in society and is suicidal, it is the State’s duty to ensure that
mental health services are accessible to that person to help him/her work through the problems so
that the option of suicide need not arise and the person’s right to a happy and productive life can
be realized. In essence, the researcher is promulgating that even though the State proscribes
9
Richard Momeyer, ‘Suicide is an Individual Right’ in Michael Biskup and Carol Wekesser (eds), Suicide: Opposing
Viewpoints (Green Haven Press Inc 1992) 13
10
[1983] 6 WWR 322
11
(1994) AIR 1844
12
Michael Cholbi, ‘Suicide’ in Edward Zalta (ed), The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Metaphysics Research Lab,
Stanford University 2017) <https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2017/entries/suicide/> accessed 1 March 2018
13
David Markson, ‘The Punishment of Suicide: A need for Change’ (1969) 14 VLR 463

3
suicide, the citizen may have a valid right to it and if the State seeks to prevent suicide then it has
a correlative duty to the citizen as opposed to the latter’s mere obedience to the law.

In Collymore v A-G of Trinidad and Tobago, the Court held that constitutional freedoms
did not confer right or license to adopt a course of conduct which was inimical to the peace, order
and good government of the country14. It follows that, in Guyana which has a small population
and where approximately 112,500 persons suffer from mental disorders15, it would not be
beneficial to the State if these persons exercised a right to commit suicide. Instead it would be
detrimental to the family unit, since an earning member or potential earner of the family would be
lost hence placing financial strain on the remaining members; the community since it could result
in a domino- effect with others practicing same; and the country which would lose a significant
portion of active contributors to its development, though, it may be argued that since the person
suffers from a mental illness, their productive capacity would be substantially diminished.
However, generally, the individual, public and social interests which Roscoe Pound, proponent of
Sociological School of Jurisprudence, stated that the law should protect would, in the Guyanese
context, be substantially diminished16. The social utilitarian argument also addresses the induced
grief for family and friends as a consequence of suicide. Hence, though Finnis’ determination that
the basic good of life should not be abrogated regardless of its projected benefits, in this case relief
from the worries of life, may seem applicable17. This principle can be extended to say that such
basic goods should not be violated without exploring the available avenues of aid. The duty would
therefore be deflected onto the individual to utilize the services provided by the State.

Lord Templeman stated in R v Brown18 that society is entitled to protect itself against a
cult of violence. It is in this light that perhaps s 97 of COAG was implemented so that by virtue of
the command theory, it is expressly prohibiting the act of suicide whilst implying that the offender
be successful in their attempt to die or be punished for their failure by the sanction of
imprisonment. However, Lon Fuller intimated that since the law is supposed to guide human
behavior, it is not fully law if it fails to do so successfully19. s 97 of COAG has been in effect since
1998 and is reflective of the pre-1961 stance of England on Suicide. Yet, between 2010 – 2012
there were 667 reported suicide attempts which amounted to an average of 200 deaths per year20.
This excludes those attempts that were unreported. Llewellyn, proponent of the jurisprudential
theory of legal realism, stated that the law is the result of the judges’ decisions. However, even
this is difficult to ascertain since most of these cases, though reported, do not make it to the Courts.
In fact, it was only in 2009 that the Guyana Police Force announced that they would prosecute
persons who survived suicide attempts in light of the rampant suicidal trend in the country21. Yet,
there has been no reports of this. The objective of s 97 of COAG which is to prevent suicide
attempts has, therefore, not been accomplished in the last twenty years given that suicide is still a
rampant issue in the Guyanese society. Its retributive approach in meting out a punishment based

14
(1967) 12 WIR 5
15
Ibid
16
R. W. James, Jurisprudence and Legal Theory (Department of Law, University of Guyana 2017)
17
Joel Feinberg, Jules Coleman, Philosophy of Law (7th edn, Thomas Wadsworth 2004) 12
18
(1993) 2 WIR 556
19
Joel Feinberg and Jules Coleman, Philosophy of Law (7th edn, Thomas Wadsworth 2004) 14
20
World Health Organization, ‘Suicide Prevention in Guyana’ (WHO, 20 March, 2017)
<http://www.who.int/mental_health/suicide-prevention/guyana/en/> accessed 15 March 2018
21
‘Police prepared to charge attempted suicide victims’ Kaieteur News (Guyana 24 June 2009)

4
on the offense itself as opposed to the futuristic approach of preventing the offence, is thus,
ineffective. Indeed, the choice between death and imprisonment seems imbalanced since, a person
who is prepared to end his/her life would certainly not be intimidated by the prospect of
imprisonment. Even if such an intimidation existed, it would just inspire the individual to choose
a more certain method to ensure success in the next attempt. Also, where the family would have
been emotionally battered from almost losing a loved one, the fear of having that person
imprisoned would deter any reports on the attempt so that the person would not be able to receive
the necessary psychiatric attention.

In addition, though it may have been an appropriate sanction twenty years ago when the
general perspective on acts of suicide in Guyana were shrugged off as the fragile nature of the
individual in handling life or as an attention-seeker who deserved the punishment, as Von Savigny
postulated, with the progression of time, legislation becomes detached from the Volksgeist or the
popular consciousness of the people and is cut off from the roots of the community22. In addition,
the utilitarian theory posits that punishment is morally justifiable by its good consequences; the
most important being its preventative effect23. As previously established, the retributive nature of
s 97 of COAG has been grossly ineffective in preventing suicide over the years so that the problem
has escalated to the extent of threatening the very structure of the Guyanese society. Through his
analytical approach of legal positivism, H.L.A Hart perceived secondary rules, comprising of rules
of recognition, change and adjudication, as tools to modify the primary rules aimed at society
which are static in nature. Both the Government24 and the Opposition25 recognize the inefficiency
of s 97 of COAG, however, there is still conflict in the decriminalization of the Act. The WHO
reported that the mental health system in Guyana is fragmented, poorly resourced and not
integrated into the general health care system26. It was further reported that though the care of the
mentally-ill is provided for under the Mental Health Ordinance 1930, it is antiquated and fails to
make provisions for the protection of the rights of the people with mental disorders 27. Initiatives
such as the Suicide Helpline launched in 2015, the National Mental Health Action Plan 2015 –
2020 and the 2014 Mental Health Strategic Plan indicate that efforts have been made to provide
help to those with mental health problems. However, a lot more has to be done.

With the vibrant voices of Anti-suicide advocates from Governmental and non-
governmental organizations, hereinafter NGOs, as well as private groups and citizens, the country
is more open to discussions of mental health awareness and suicide prevention. The equality of
welfare and resources theory of John Rawls28 and Ronald Dworkin29 states that equality amounts
to equality of opportunity – the same initial expectations of basic goods. By depriving persons
with mental health problems from access to health care services, the State is discriminating against
these persons to its detriment. If it seeks to prevent the future occurrence of this national epidemic,

22
R. W. James, Jurisprudence and Legal Theory (Department of Law, University of Guyana 2017)
23
Igor Primoratz, Justifying Legal Punishment (Humanities Press International Inc. 1989) 7
24
Staff Writer, ‘Ramjattan backs decriminalizing suicide attempts’ Stabroek News (Guyana 7 August 2015)
25
Devina Samaroo, ‘Voices Unite for Decriminalisation of Attempted Suicide’ Guyana Times Inc (Guyana 11
September 2016)
26
World Health Organization, Ministry of Health, ‘WHO – AIMS Report on Mental Health System in Guyana’ (World
Health Organization 2008) 5
27
Ibid
28
John Rawls, A Theory of Justice (Harvard University Press 1999)
29
Ronald Dworkin, ‘What is Equality? Part 2: Equality of Resources’ (1981) 10 Philosophy and Public Affairs 283

5
it has to start with decriminalizing suicide attempts and then, inter alia, review and update the
Mental Health Ordinance to reflect the rights of the persons with mental health issues, train and
place counsellors in schools and health centres across the country and rally with Anti-suicide
NGOs to educate and equip the population with the tools necessary to observe suicidal behavior
and to offer help. It is only in this way that the law can progress from its static nature.

6
 Conclusion

Based on the foregoing discourse, it can be concluded that s 97 of the COAG which
provides for the imprisonment of persons who attempt suicide is ineffective since it has failed to
curb the national epidemic in Guyana. Where the State has a right to impose sanctions in order to
solicit an acceptable conduct from its citizens, the citizens also have rights to be provided with the
resources which would enable them to lead happy and productive lives, not only physically but
also mentally. Where there is a failure to provide these necessities, the reciprocal relationship
between the State and citizen is abrogated so that the citizen retains his/her right to the autonomy
of his/her body and thus, the right to determine the manner and time in which he/she lives and
dies. If the State provides the resources for the citizens to be happy and productive, such as
counselling to develop good mental health, the duty is deflected on to the citizen to utilize these
opportunities and to become positive contributors to the State. Guyana, however, still has a long
way to go in implementing measures to promote mental health care and to prevent the suicidal
trend which plagues its nationals.

7
 Bibilography

--‘Police prepared to charge attempted suicide victims’ Kaieteur News (Guyana 24 June 2009)

Cholbi M, ‘Suicide’ in Edward Zalta (ed), The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

(Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University 2017)
<https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2017/entries/suicide/> accessed 1 March 2018

Dworkin R, ‘What is Equality? Part 2: Equality of Resources’ (1981) 10 Philosophy and Public
Affairs 283

Feinberg J and Coleman J, Philosophy of Law (7th edn, Thomas Wadsworth 2004) 12

James R.W., Jurisprudence and Legal Theory (Department of Law, University of Guyana 2017)

Jones R, Emile Durkheim: An Introduction to Four Major Works (Sage Publications Inc 1986)

Markson D, ‘The Punishment of Suicide: A need for Change’ (1969) 14 VLR 463

Momeyer R, ‘Suicide is an Individual Right’ in Michael Biskup and Carol Wekesser (eds),
Suicide: Opposing Viewpoints (Green Haven Press Inc 1992) 13

Primoratz I, Justifying Legal Punishment (Humanities Press International Inc. 1989)

Rawls J, A Theory of Justice (Harvard University Press 1999)

Samaroo D, ‘Voices Unite for Decriminalisation of Attempted Suicide’ Guyana Times Inc
(Guyana 11 September 2016)

Staff Editor, ‘Guyana had world’s highest estimated suicide Rate in 2012 – PAHO/WHO’
Stabroek News (Guyana, 4 September, 2014)

Staff Writer, ‘Ramjattan backs decriminalizing suicide attempts’ Stabroek News (Guyana 7 August
2015)

World Health Organization, ‘Suicide Prevention in Guyana’ (WHO, 20 March, 2017)

<http://www.who.int/mental_health/suicide-prevention/guyana/en/> accessed 15 March 2018

World Health Organization, Ministry of Health, ‘WHO – AIMS Report on Mental Health System
in Guyana’ (World Health Organization 2008)