MAKKAH, 10 September 2006 — Who would have thought that a father and mother would stoop so low as to send their innocent young children out onto the streets to beg and earn money for them?
In the runup to Ramadan as Umrah pilgrims flock to the Kingdom, the number of beggars dramatically increases. In this investigative report, Arab News reveals that many of the young children seen begging in and around the Grand Mosque are in fact forced by their callous parents to pester the pilgrims and beg.
Children found begging are arrested by officials from the Anti-Beggary Department and detained while officers conduct their investigations. The children, who are of different genders, ages and nationalities, are given clean beds to sleep in and served fresh food to eat. The children are usually impoverished and dirty and so for many this is the first time in years that they have been afforded such luxuries. They are young and easily manipulated and fearing their parents’ beatings and punishment spend their time on the streets begging.
Shamsuddin is Burmese and for a 12-year-old looks much smaller than his age. Innocently he says, “My dad forced me to beg — I hate begging but what can I do?”
As his eyes well up with tears I hand Shamsuddin a handkerchief and slowly he recovers. “I once told my pops that I was tired of going out onto the street. He took a knife and threatened to cut me if I wouldn’t,” said Shamsuddin.
The 12-year-old rolled up his sleeves and showed bruises he received when his father recently beat him up.
As I speak to Shamsuddin he slowly opens up and tells me a tale of regular beatings with a leather belt and being tied up. “If I said no to begging then my dad would say it was time to teach me a lesson for being disobedient.”
Shamsuddin feels resentment toward his parents. “I’m angry at my father because he’s deprived me of the best years of my life. I should be at school and playing football like other children but I’m begging and asking people for sympathy. I was fed up doing this and so decided to hand myself in. I saw the Anti-Beggary Department bus and I ran toward them because I wanted to put an end to my torture and misery.”
At the Anti-Beggary Department Arab News spoke to a quiet Nigerian boy called Ahmad Ibraheem, who is disabled. Ahmad tells a story of how his parents forced him to use his disability to beg. His family was staying in the Kingdom illegally.
Ahmad’s legs are deformed, probably as a result of polio, but with the use of his upper-body he seems to be very active. With a beautiful wide smile he said, “My parents told me to go and beg and that I was doing a good thing and that God would reward me for helping them. My mother said that God has ‘blessed’ me with this handicap so that I can earn money and help my family.”
The 10-year-old was caught by officials begging in the Grand Mosque and was brought to the center. “I like it here, it’s clean and the people want to help us. The food is nice and they gave me nice clothes to wear.”
Thirteen-year-old Samir Hawsawi is of Nigerian origin and was born and brought up in the Kingdom. Samir says he has been begging ever since he remembers. “My dad told me to start begging and learn how to depend on myself. He told me it was the easy way to a good life. But I just want to go to school like other children, play football and be happy. I hate this life,” he said.
Samir is thin and seems to be malnourished. While speaking to Arab News Samir was initially shy but slowly began to gain confidence. “My dad told me I had to bring at least SR150 a day and if I didn’t then he would beat me hard.”
Samir rolled up his trousers and showed scars on his legs. “These are the marks of the beatings he gave me. In order to make money I began to beg and sell water. My pops would take the money from me each night.”
A couple of weeks ago the Anti-Beggary Department arrested Samir who is glad that he was caught.
“I hate my dad for what he has done to me. Other kids don’t need to do this type of stuff. I think my dad is greedy; he would take the money and then spend it on whatever he wants. At least the people here look after me. I like it here.”
Some of the children explained how their parents would even manipulate religion to force them to beg. Ali Elyas, 13, told how his mother would cite “supposed” fatwas to force him into begging. “She told me there was a fatwa that says begging is permissible. I was begging but now that I’ve come here I’ve learned that she was lying. The people here have told me there is no fatwa like that,” said Ali.
Mansour Al-Hazmi, manager of the Anti-Beggary Department in Makkah, said most of the child beggars were children of illegal overstayers. “The alarming thing is that these children are given the impression that what they’re doing is perfectly okay.”
Al-Hazmi said his department keeps the children and provides them as much care and attention as possible. “It’s a sorry situation and our hearts cry when we see what many of these children have gone through.”
The Ministry of Social Affairs has started a social and religious program to help them and solve some of their problems, he added.
As a word of parting advice Al-Hazmi says, “If people have money to give in charity then they should make a point of giving it to registered organizations rather than street beggars. If we do this then the problems with beggars will come to an end.”
