Mentally ill Briton faces Execution Comments please

A group of drug smugglers took advantage of man's mental state and convinced him to smuggle their drugs. The Chinese government are now threatening to execute him, for smuggling drugs.

Read the full story here

Lawyers warn that Akmal Shaikh, 53, who has delusional psychosis, could be shot dead in jail after reports that his second appeal has failed



Like the elderly and like children, people with mental health problems are vulnerable to being exploited and mistreated. And likewise the civility of a society is measured by its treatment of its most vulnerable members

Yes this man was smuggling heroin, but was not in a fit state to look after himself properly. Stephen Fry has spoken out about it, so should doctors, psychiatrists and those who care about people with mental health difficulties

This are details of how to contact the Chinese Embassy to protest about this treatment

Chinese Embassy Address: 49-51 Portland Place London W1B 1JL
Madam Fu Ying: Ambassador of the People's Republic of China to the United Kingdom Mr. Chen Xiaodong:Minister of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China
Mr.Zhang Lirong: Minister Counsellor of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China


If you leave comments below, I will print them off and take them to the Chinese Embassy in person, on Friday. There is not a lot of time, because his execution is imminent

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Creativity and Genius - Madness or Gayness

The Independent Pink List counts gays in public life, there was a time when gays were thought fit only for creative roles, "in the thee-arterr" to quote my long dead mother-in-law.

The Institute of Psychiatry Debate June 10th Maudsley Debate, organised by Jo Hurlow, in which I recently participated asked the question "Is Mental Illness the price we pay for exceptional creativity?" or "No Genius without Madness" depending on whether you read the title or the subtitle. This was surrounded by an Art Exhibition from "people with mental health problems"

This question makes me uneasy. The overwhelming evidence suggests that poor mental health is associated with Poverty, Inequality, Physical Ill Health and Stress. I based my response on that. Our side won, I like to think that makes us right. Poor mental health is not associated with genius or creativity, it is associated with stress and poverty. Being ahead of your time, and living in a world of stupid people is stressful, and it is difficult to make money when no one understands your ideas, even if the next generation is going to be rich as Croesus.

That we still have the debate reminds of the time when it was OK to ask whether Blacks had a sense of rhythm and whether Gayness was the cause or consequence of a theatrical lifestyle.

I suggest that the Institute of Psychiatry now asks

"Do people with a broken leg write better plays?", "Are Blacks more musical?" and "Are Gays more creative ?" The answers have more to do with tolerance and diversity than human tendencies.

While we misguidedly continue to associate creativity with mental illness we ignore those causes that we can deal with:
Poverty, Inequality, Physical Ill Health and Stress

As I said in the Debate - the reason you may see more people with mental health problems in creative careers, is because the hours are more flexible and because few of us can get proper jobs because of the stigma associated with our illnesses.