COMMENT | As long as we are alive, there is hope. This is a fundamental belief we can all hold on to. But sadly, some have slipped their hold on this belief and have died by suicide - a point at which they reached the heights of emotional psychological pain, and the depths of their sense of helplessness and hopelessness.

Especially for World Suicide Prevention Day (WSPD) today, we need to stop and reflect on what we as individuals and as groups can do to create hope… and of course, move to actually do it.

The International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) has announced the theme for WSPD 2021-2023 - “Creating Hope Through Action” - as a reminder that there is an alternative to suicide, and everyone can be that person who infuses hope to those at the brink of losing all hope.

Earlier this year, the Royal Malaysian Police released statistics that showed a marked increase in suicides in the country.

Since then, many articles and talks focus on the numbers, which would matter mainly for research and policy decisions at governmental levels or raise the public’s awareness about the issue.

Otherwise, the numbers shouldn’t really matter -...