Beyond shame

The good news is that Italy, at a European level, is considered a country with a low suicide rate. According to the latest WHO report (Suicide Worldwide in 2019), in 2019 it was 0.67 cases for every 10 thousand people, well lower than other European realities such as France (1.38); Germany (1.23); Poland (1.13); Romania (0.97); Spain (0.77); and the UK (0.79).
It's a completely different story if we look at the phenomenon of those who take their own lives inside the prisons of our country. Confirmation comes with the latest data from the Council of Europe, Italy is well above the European average. The numbers refer to 2021, when the suicide rate in prison was 10.6 cases per 10,000 people detained, while the European average stood at 9.4. And in three years the situation in our Peninsula has gotten much worse. In the dossier edited by Antigone, situations emerge that must bring shame to all those who have responsibilities in the prison world. The emergency continues, between the beginning of January and mid-April, there were 30 confirmed suicides. One every three and a half days. In 2022, the record year, there were 20 in mid-April. By adding the suicides that occurred in 2023 with those in the first months of 2024, there are already one hundred.

From the biographies of these people emerge in many cases situations of great marginality. They are mostly young, the incidence of suicide rate is higher among women, many are people of foreign origin. There are also numerous situations of presumed or confirmed psychiatric pathologies. The average age of those who took their own lives is 40 years old. The institutions where the highest number of suicides occurred between 2023 and 2024 are the prisons of Rome Regina Coeli, Terni, Turin and Verona. And precisely in Turin, the City Council approved a motion that commits the mayor and council to asking the Minister of Justice to create a new prison structure, better integrated with the rest of the city and in which it is also possible to carry out sentences attenuated custody leading to a successful reintegration into society. The personal stories of those who have surrendered tell of hardship, suffering, loneliness, illness. Overcrowding in prisons is a symptom of the failure of all justice. There is always talk of reforms, meanwhile prisoners continue to die. To avoid loneliness and depression, telephone calls could be liberalized. Being able to talk to a loved one can do a lot, for those who are experiencing deep pain, it could even save their lives.


Chiara Genisio
NP May 2024