Hundreds of thousands of people shackled for mental health issues globally, Human Rights Watch says

Men sit chained in a room at the Coptic Church Mamboleo, in Kisumu city, western Kenya, in this handout pictured obtained by Reuters on October 4, 2020. Kriti Sharma/Human Rights Watch/Handout via REUTERS

ABUJA (Reuters) - Hundreds of thousands of men, women and children with mental health conditions are living chained up in roughly 60 countries, Human Rights Watch said on Tuesday.

Without mental health support or awareness, families or institutions shackle people against their will - often believing their condition is because they are bewitched, possessed or have sinned - and leaving them eating, sleeping, urinating and defecating in one small space, the rights watchdog said in a report.