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mental-illness

Indonesia’s mentally ill languish in shackles

In a small faith healing centre in rural Indonesia, Sulaiman chanted in a confused fashion, tugged at a chain attached to his ankle, and shifted restlessly on a hard, wooden bench. The emaciated man has been chained up for the past two years, and is one of thousands of Indonesians with a mental illness currently shackled, according to a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report released Monday. Chaining up the mentally ill has been illegal in Indonesia for nearly 40 years but remains rife across the country, especially in rural areas where health services are limited and belief in evil spirits prevails, according to HRW.

Woman jailed for outburst during Colorado movie massacre trial

A woman protesting against capital punishment stood up in court on Thursday and shouted “Don’t kill him!” before bailiffs tackled her during the penalty phase of James Holmes’ mass murder trial in Colorado. The disturbance by spectator Deborah Cave came as the district attorney addressed jurors who will ultimately decide whether Holmes, convicted of fatally shooting 12 people in a movie theater in 2012, will be sentenced to death or life in prison without parole. It is mental illness!” Caves cried as she climbed over rows of seats toward Holmes, 27, in the crowded courtroom at the Arapahoe County Justice Center on the outskirts of Denver.

Director tries for inside story of mental illness in ‘Mania Days’

By Jon Herskovitz AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) – Paul Dalio, a film director who has bipolar disorder, said he made “Mania Days” because he wanted filmgoers to see the world through the eyes of those with mental illness. The movie, which premiered in the past week at the South by Southwest film festival in Austin and stars Katie Holmes and Luke Kirby, tells the story of a manic-depressive man and woman who are made for each other and destructive together. Dalio said there have been noble efforts to portray mental illness on film from those without firsthand knowledge and said he wanted to tell the inside story of what it is like to live with the disease. In a relationship with peaks and valleys brought on by mental illness, the two share humor, tenderness and bewildering acts that include taking a subcompact car into a fast-flowing river.