The report said 679 Saudi females were caught begging in Riyadh city alone, followed by 418 in Qassim.
It also said that 760 Saudi children, including girls, were found begging in streets across the Kingdom. An official at the Ministry of Social Affairs told an Arabic newspaper that most of those nabbed are divorced, widowed, unemployed and people with special needs.
After reading this report, I became immersed in thoughts. Yes, tackling the problem of begging is the duty of the concerned agencies. But it is also the duty of the government to bring officials to account for allowing conditions to deteriorate to such a level that Saudi men and women are forced to beg. The report indicates that most of those female beggars are poor and destitute. They are jobless, divorced or widowed.
Oh God, has the situation of Saudi women — in this land of charity, wealth and humanity — reached such a dire level that they are forced to stretch out their hands to strangers? Where is the Ministry of Social Affairs? Can it at least consider the plight of the weaker section of society with compassion and mercy?
According to some other reports, there are over 400,000 divorcees in the Kingdom. These women, along with those who are widowed, have been living in misery and denied justice. Some people in our society treat them rudely as if they are inferior. These women have lost their breadwinners and thus their means of livelihood. There are also no government organizations to take care of them. Consequently they are forced to resort to ignominious jobs to make ends meet.
This situation necessitates the creation of a national body to care for widows and divorcees. The nation should undertake the mission of lending a hand to these weaker sections of society, as well as to guarantee them a decent and dignified living either through direct assistance or by guaranteeing them suitable jobs with a fixed income.
I have a question for charities: Why do they ignore these people? What are they spending their wealth on? This is an honest question coming from my conscience.
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