SBS Dateline | Bali s Shame

Beyond the beauty of Bali’s sand and surf lies an ugly and untreated problem.

This week on Dateline, reporter David O’Shea uncovers the terrible treatment of Bali’s mentally ill, who are often chained up for years on end by their families.

David brings us the story of Komang, whose parents had forced him to live in a cage for 8 years. “In the cage they fed me three times a day. Then they washed me, and I went to sleep,” he says. The family say it was a last resort as they didn’t have the money for treatment.

The problem is made worse by Bali’s severe lack of facilities. There is just one mental hospital on the island, and only 30 beds are reserved for the poor. Komang’s father says the hospital advised him to restrain his son, but the hospital’s staff firmly deny this.

David accompanies Bali’s leading psychiatrist, Dr. Luh Ketut Suryani, as she goes from village to village visiting her patients and providing them with treatment. Her holistic approach combines modern psychiatry and anti-psychotic drugs with Balinese spiritualism.

David finds a heartwarming development in this tale of loss and desperation.