JEDDAH, 14 October 2004 — Once again Ramadan is upon us and residents of most Saudi cities are already witnessing the yearly invasion of hapless, luckless and homeless people who appear on the streets during the holy month.
Jeddah’s anti-beggary squad is also busy on the streets; recently they arrested over 1,000 beggars. There were fewer beggars on the street for a period as a result but with Ramadan just around the corner, their numbers have again increased. They congregate around shopping malls, banks, supermarkets — anywhere they are sure to find a crowd of potential givers.
Islam encourages giving to the needy and less fortunate. There is no disputing that there are those within our society that truly have no other choice but to beg, who need the help and depend on charitable donations in order to live. But the not-so-needy impostors abuse this public generosity. These individuals are well aware that this is the season that people tend to be particularly generous and use that knowledge to their advantage. They employ a variety of wiles to gain your sympathy, and in turn, your riyals.
Some display a deformed or missing limb, rolling their sleeves up to display their handicap, hoping to move you — toward your wallet. However, not everyone is impressed. One man at a mall waved away a beggar with a missing left arm saying “he still has one arm; he can wash cars.”
Other beggars cynically use children to attract donations. There is a very good possibility however, that the child on display is neither related to nor under the care of the accompanying adult. According to an official with the anti-beggary department, it is a common practice to lend out a child for a portion of the proceeds.
According to psychologist Lina Hashem, using children for begging purposes elicits greater sympathy.
An eight-year-old boy who was a regular beggar on Jeddah’s Tahlia Street said he would be beaten if he came home with less than SR50 a day.
“I have to stay on the streets until I make enough money,” he said. This boy and the other regulars on Tahlia have disappeared. The boy may have been among those picked up in the recent raids by the anti-beggary officials. Although, the boy claimed he was regularly beaten, there was no visible evidence of this abuse. Even if true, it could well be a sales pitch used to trigger sympathy.
Hashem said a hierarchy of worthy recipients exists in people’s minds. She said people sympathize more with women with infants and the severely handicapped, followed by children, then women, and finally men.
She added that using children, ranging from six or seven years old, evoke most people’s sympathy.
Arab News spoke with several shoppers at a local mall and found that such hierarchy does exists in most people’s minds as to who needs the money and who doesn’t. Most people have more sympathy for the handicapped and women with several children. Next come children in the age range of five to seven and the elderly, then women alone. Men are the ones given charity the least.
There are both the needy and the impostors on the streets during Ramadan. The latter cynically manipulate the good will of donors. It is impossible to be sure which is which.
