Begging

File:Beggars in Rabat.tif (Morocco), 1960.]]

Beggars have existed in human society since the dawn of recorded history. Street begging has happened in most societies around the world, though its prevalence and exact form vary.

Ancient Greeks distinguished between the pénēs (Greek: πένης, "active poor") and the ptōchós (Greek: πτωχός, "passive poor"). The pénēs was somebody with a job, only not enough to make a living, while the ptōchós depended on others entirely. The working poor were accorded a higher social status.{{cite book|last=Cavallo|first=Guglielmo|author-link=Guglielmo Cavallo|title=The Byzantines|page=15|year=1997|location=Chicago|publisher=University of Chicago Press|isbn=978-0-226-09792-3|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FJDRx6FAi0EC}} The New Testament contains several references to Jesus' status as the savior of the ptochos, usually translated as "the poor", considered the most wretched portion of society. In the rich man and Lazarus parable, Lazarus is called 'ptochos' and presented as living in extreme poverty.

A Caveat or Warning for Common Cursitors, vulgarly called vagabonds, was first published in 1566 by Thomas Harman. From early modern England, another example is Robert Greene in his coney-catching pamphlets, the titles of which included "The Defence of Conny-catching," in which he argued there were worse crimes to be found among "reputable" people. The Beggar's Opera is a ballad opera in three acts written in 1728 by John Gay. The Life and Adventures of Bampfylde Moore Carew was first published in 1745. There are similar writers for many European countries in the early modern period.{{Citation needed|date=February 2011}}

According to Jackson J. Spielvogel, "Poverty was a highly visible problem in the eighteenth century, both in cities and in the countryside... Beggars in Bologna were estimated at 25 percent of the population; in Mainz, figures indicate that 30 percent of the people were beggars or prostitutes... In France and Britain by the end of the century, an estimated 10 percent of the people depended on charity or begging for their food."Jackson J. Spielvogel (2008). "[https://books.google.com/books?id=fwxLkRmd-4QC Western Civilization: Since 1500]". Cengage Learning. p.566. {{ISBN|0-495-50287-1}}

The British Poor Laws, dating from the Renaissance, placed various restrictions on begging. At various times, begging was restricted to the disabled. This system developed into the workhouse, a state-operated institution where those unable to obtain other employment were forced to work in often grim conditions in exchange for a small amount of food. The welfare state of the 20th century greatly reduced the number of beggars by directly providing for the necessities of the poor from state funds.

File:India - Kolkata street beggar - 3246.jpg reaches into a car (Calcutta Kolkata)]]

Begging is an age-old social phenomenon in India. In the medieval and earlier times begging was considered to be an acceptable occupation which was embraced within the traditional social structure.{{Cite journal|title=The Administration of Beggary Prevention Laws in India: a legal aid viewpoint|last=Pande|first=B.B|publisher=International Journal of the Sociology of Law |volume=11|year=1983 |pages=291–304}} This system of begging and almsgiving to mendicants and the poor is still widely practiced in India, with over 500,000 beggars in 2015.{{Cite web|url=http://www.ndtv.com/india-news/over-4-lakh-beggars-in-india-west-bengal-tops-the-list-among-states-1207034|title=Over 5 Lakh Beggars in India, West Bengal Tops the List Among States}}

In contemporary India, beggars are often stigmatized as undeserving. People often believe that beggars are not destitute and instead call them professional beggars.{{Vague|date=May 2018}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.storypick.com/professional-beggars-in-india/|title=6 Professional Beggars In India Who Are Probably Richer Than You & I|date=2015-07-25}}{{Better source needed|date=May 2018}} There is a wide perception of begging scams.{{Cite web|url=http://goindia.about.com/od/annoyancesinconveniences/p/indiabegging.htm|title=India Beggars and Begging Scams: What You Should Know|access-date=2016-03-22|archive-date=2017-03-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170305094915/http://goindia.about.com/od/annoyancesinconveniences/p/indiabegging.htm|url-status=dead}} This view is refuted by grassroots research organizations such as Aashray Adhikar Abhiyan, which claim that beggars and other homeless people are overwhelmingly destitute and vulnerable. Their studies indicate that 99 percent of men and 97 percent of women resort to beggary due to abject poverty, distress migration from rural villages and the unavailability of employment.{{Cite book|title=People Without A Nation: the destituted people; A documented outcome of the national consultation on Urban Poor: Special Focus on Beggary and Vagrancy Laws- the issue of De-custodialisation (De-criminalization)|author=AAA, Ashray Adhikar Abhiyan|year=2006|location=Print-O-Graph, New Delhi|page=8}}

After the establishment of the Ming dynasty, many farmers and unemployed laborers in Beijing were forced to beg to survive.{{Cite book|title=Dangerous Women: Warriors, Grannies, and Geishas of the Ming|last=Cass|first=Victoria|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers|year=1999|isbn=0-8476-9395-3|location=New York|pages=[https://archive.org/details/dangerouswomen00vict/page/7 7]|url=https://archive.org/details/dangerouswomen00vict/page/7}} Begging was especially difficult during Ming times due to high taxes that limited the disposable income of most individuals.{{Cite book|title=China and England: The Preindustrial Struggle for Justice in Word and Image|last=Powers|first=Martin|publisher=Routledge|year=2019|isbn=978-1138504035|location=New York|pages=175}} Beijing's harsh winters were a difficult challenge for beggars. To avoid freezing to death, some beggars paid porters one copper coin to sleep in their warehouse for the night. Others turned to burying themselves in manure and eating arsenic to avoid the pain of the cold. Thousands of beggars died of poison and exposure to the elements every year.

Begging was some people's primary occupation. A Qing dynasty source states that "professional beggars" were not considered to be destitute, and as such were not allowed to receive government relief, such as food rations, clothing, and shelter.{{Cite book|title=A Complete Book Concerning Happiness and Benevolence: A Manual for Local Magistrates in Seventeenth-Century China|last=Liu-Hung|first=Huang|publisher=The University of Arizona Press|year=1984|isbn=0-8165-0820-8|location=Arizona|pages=554|translator-last=Djang|translator-first=Chu}} Beggars would often perform, or train animals to perform, to earn money from passers-by. Although beggars were of low status in Ming, they were considered to have higher social standing than prostitutes, entertainers, runners, and soldiers.{{Cite book|title=Feng|last=Feng|first=Menglong|publisher=University of Washington Press|year=2000|isbn=0-295-97843-0|location=Seattle|pages=478–480|translator-last=Shuhui|translator-first=Yang|translator-last2=Yunqin|translator-first2=Yang}}

Some individuals capitalized on beggars and became "Beggar Chiefs". Beggar chiefs provided security in the form of food for beggars and in return received a portion of beggars' daily earnings as tribute. Beggar chiefs would often lend their surplus income back to beggars and charge interest, furthering their subjects' dependence on them to the point of near slavery. Although beggar chiefs could acquire significant wealth, they were still looked upon as low-class citizens. The title of beggar chief was often passed down family lines and could stick with an individual through occupational changes.

{{Main|Mendicant}}

File:Mendicant in India.png

File:Beggingmonk-himeji-2019-08-13.jpg

Many religions have prescribed begging as the only acceptable means of support for certain classes of adherents, including Hinduism, Sufism, Buddhism, Christianity, and typically to provide a way for certain adherents to focus exclusively on spiritual development without the possibility of becoming caught up in worldly affairs.

Religious ideals of bhiksha in Hinduism, charity in Christianity besides others promote almsgiving.{{Cite journal|last=Gopalakrishnan|first=A.|year=2002|title=Poverty As Crime|journal=Frontline Magazine |volume=19 |page=23 }} This obligation of making gifts to God by almsgiving explains the occurrence of generous donations outside religious sites like temples and mosques to mendicants begging in the name of God.

Tzedakah plays a central role in Judaism. The Jewish practice of maaser kesafim requires a contribution of 10% of one's income as a monetary tithe, mostly to be given to the poor.{{Cite web|url=https://www.sefaria.org/Shulchan_Arukh,_Yoreh_De%27ah.249|title=Shulchan Arukh, Yoreh De'ah 249|website=www.sefaria.org}}

In Buddhism, monks and nuns traditionally live by begging for alms, as done by the historical Gautama Buddha himself. This is, among other reasons, so that Laity can gain religious merit by giving food, medicines, and other essential items to the monks. The monks seldom need to plead for food; in villages and towns throughout modern Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, and other Buddhist countries, householders can often be found at dawn every morning streaming down the road to the local temple to give food to the monks. In East Asia, monks and nuns were expected to farm or work for returns to feed themselves.{{cite web|url=http://blog.udn.com/jackwing/3188887 |title=農禪vs商禪 |language=zh |publisher=Blog.udn.com |date=2009-08-19 |access-date=2011-12-05}}{{cite web |url=http://2007.tibetmagazine.net/20054-p83.htm |title=僧俗 |publisher=2007.tibetmagazine.net |access-date=2011-12-05 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120318101902/http://2007.tibetmagazine.net/20054-p83.htm |archive-date=2012-03-18 }}{{cite web |url=http://www.hkbuddhist.org/magazine/552/552_10.html |title=鐵鞋踏破心無礙 濁汗成泥意志堅 – 記山東博山正覺寺仁達法師 |publisher=Hkbuddhist.org |access-date=2011-12-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928101720/http://www.hkbuddhist.org/magazine/552/552_10.html |archive-date=2011-09-28 |url-status=dead }}

The biblical figure Jesus is said to have lived a simple life. He is said to have encouraged his disciples "to take nothing for their journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in their belts—but to wear sandals and not put on two tunics."{{Cite web|url=http://www.bibleserver.com/text/ESV/Mark6,8|title = Mark 6:8 | English Standard Version :: ERF Bibleserver}}

Ming China was founded by former beggar Zhu Yuanzhang. Orphaned in childhood due to famine, Zhu Yuanzhang, turned to the Huangjue temple for help. When the temple ran out of resources to support its occupants he became a mendicant monk traveling China begging for food.{{Cite book|title=From the Mongols to the Ming Dynasty : How a Begging Monk Became Emperor of China, Zhu Yuan Zhang|last=Hung|first=Hing Ming|publisher=Algora Publishing|year=2016|isbn=978-1628941524|location=New York|pages=21–22}}

{{see also|Anti-homelessness legislation}}

File:Kindness meter ottawa 2011.jpeg, Canada. The meter accepts donations for charitable efforts as part of an official effort to discourage panhandling.]]

File:Signs in Sarahan, India.jpg, India]]

Begging has been restricted or prohibited at various times and for various reasons, typically revolving around a desire to preserve public order or to induce people to work rather than to beg. Various European Poor Laws prohibited or regulated begging from the Renaissance to modern times, with varying levels of effectiveness and enforcement. Similar laws were adopted by many developing countries.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}}

"Aggressive panhandling" has been specifically prohibited by law in various jurisdictions in the United States and Canada, typically defined as persistent or intimidating begging.{{cite news|url=http://newsok.com/in-tough-times-panhandling-may-increase-in-oklahoma-city/article/3318618|title=In tough times, panhandling may increase in Oklahoma City|first=Johnny|last=Johnson|date=November 3, 2008|newspaper=The Oklahoman}}

Begging is banned in Afghanistan,{{cite news |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-begging-kabul-economic-crisis/32284304.html |title='I Have No Choice': Cleared From The Streets, Kabul's Poorest Go Door-To-Door In Search Of Alms |work=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |date=February 23, 2023 |access-date=2023-03-26}} which mostly exists in Kabul, Herat and Mazar-i-Sharif.{{cite news |url=https://tolonews.com/afghanistan/provincial-182859 |title=Authorities Begin Campaign to Round Up Beggars in Balkh |work=TOLOnews |date=April 7, 2023 |access-date=2023-04-07}}{{cite news |url=https://pajhwok.com/2022/08/23/in-herat-population-of-beggars-surges-by-30pc/ |title=In Herat, population of beggars surges by 30pc |work=Pajhwok Afghan News |date=August 23, 2022 |access-date=2023-03-26}}{{cite news |url=https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-191276 |title=Islamic Emirate: '62,000' People Begging Were Collected in Past 2 Years |work=TOLOnews |date=March 6, 2023 |access-date=2023-03-26}}{{cite news |url=https://www.ariananews.af/kabul-rounds-up-over-28000-beggars/ |title=Kabul rounds up over 28,000 beggars |work=Ariana News |date=October 20, 2024 |access-date=2024-10-20}}{{cite news |url=https://pajhwok.com/2022/09/22/women-make-most-of-the-rounded-up-beggars/ |title=Women make most of the rounded up beggars |work=Pajhwok Afghan News |date=September 22, 2022 |access-date=2023-03-26}}{{cite news |url=https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-179377 |title=Committee Formed to Provide Aid to Those Begging on Kabul Streets: Baradar |work=TOLOnews |date=August 13, 2022 |access-date=2023-03-26}}

Each state and territory in Australia has specific laws regarding begging and panhandling. Begging for alms is illegal in Victoria, South Australia, Northern Territory, and Queensland.{{Cite web|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-10-18/calls-for-ban-on-begging-to-be-lifted/7943714|title=Welfare organisations call for begging to be decriminalised|last=Nightingale|first=Tom|date=2016-10-18|website=ABC News|access-date=2019-07-05}}{{cite web|url=http://www7.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/legis/sa/consol_act/soa1953189/s12.html|title=Summary Offences Act 1953 – Sect. 12|work=South Australian Government|access-date=2018-07-27|archive-date=2020-04-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200416234606/http://www6.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/legis/sa/consol_act/soa1953189/s12.html|url-status=dead}}

There is no nationwide ban but it is illegal in several federal states.

It is legal to beg in Belarus.{{cite news |title=As Economy Reels, Belarusian Beggars Face Cold Shoulder From Authorities |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/belarus_begging_homel_orthodox_church/24461386.html |newspaper=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |date=24 January 2012 |access-date=28 May 2020}}

Begging is legal in Belgium, but municipalities can restrict it.{{cite web |title=58 bedelaars moeten geld afgeven in Antwerpen |url=https://www.vrt.be/vrtnws/nl/2018/04/20/58-bedelaars-moesten-geld-afgeven-afgelopen-jaar-in-antwerpen/ |publisher=VRT NWS |access-date=20 December 2022 |date=20 April 2018}}

It is legal to beg in Brazil, and receive medical care provided by law in SUS (Unique Health System){{cite web |url=https://www12.senado.leg.br/noticias/materias/2018/08/27/agora-e-lei-morador-de-rua-deve-ser-atendido-pelo-sus|title=Agora é lei: Morador de rua deve ser atendido pelo SUS}}

Systematic begging is illegal in Bulgaria by article 329 of the penal code.{{cite web |url=https://www.wipo.int/edocs/lexdocs/laws/en/bg/bg024en.pdf}}

The province of Ontario introduced its Safe Streets Act in 1999 to restrict specific kinds of begging, particularly certain narrowly defined cases of "aggressive" or abusive begging.{{cite web|url=http://www.e-laws.gov.on.ca/DBLaws/Statutes/English/99s08_e.htm |publisher=Government of Ontario |title=Safe Streets Act |year=1999 |access-date=2006-09-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060902063618/http://www.e-laws.gov.on.ca/DBLaws/Statutes/English/99s08_e.htm |archive-date=2006-09-02 |url-status=dead }} In 2001 this law was upheld under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.{{cite news | url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/squeegee-kids-law-upheld-in-ontario-1.258129 | access-date=2006-09-29 | title='Squeegee kids' law upheld in Ontario | publisher=CBC News | date=2001-08-03 }} The law was further upheld by the Court of Appeal for Ontario in January 2007.{{cite news | url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/squeegee-panhandling-washed-out-by-ontario-appeal-court-1.690313 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070509234955/http://www.cbc.ca/news/story/2007/01/17/tor-squeegee.html | url-status=live | archive-date=May 9, 2007 | access-date=2007-03-19 | title=Squeegee panhandling washed out by Ontario Appeal Court | publisher=CBC News | date=2007-01-17 }}

One response to the anti-panhandling laws which were passed was the creation of the Ottawa Panhandlers Union which fights for the political rights of panhandlers. The union is a shop of the Industrial Workers of the World.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}}

British Columbia enacted its own Safe Streets Act in 2004 which resembles the Ontario law. There are also critics in that province who oppose such laws.{{cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/bc/story/bc_graham20041026.html |access-date=2006-09-29 |publisher=CBC News |date=2004-10-26 |title=Police chief welcomes Safe Streets Act |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070510121642/http://www.cbc.ca/bc/story/bc_graham20041026.html |archive-date=2007-05-10 |url-status=dead }}

Begging in Chile has been decriminalized since 1998.{{cite web | url=https://www.bcn.cl/leychile/navegar?idNorma=120617&idParte=7234444&idVersion=1998-07-01 | title=Biblioteca del Congreso Nacional | Ley Chile }} Nevertheless, municipal governments from time to time attempt to reintroduce begging bans as city ordinances.

Begging in China is illegal if:

• Coercing, decoying or utilizing others to beg;
• Forcing others to beg, repeatedly tangling or using other means of nuisance.

Those cases are violations of the Article 41 of the Public Security Administration Punishment Law of the People's Republic of China. For the first case, offenders would receive a detention between 10 days and 15 days, with an additional fine under RMB 1,000; for the second case, it is punishable by a 5-day detention or warning.

According to Article 262(2) or the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China, organizing disabled or children under 14 to beg is illegal and will be punished by up to 7 years in prison, and fined.{{citation needed|date=February 2019}}

Historically beggars were controlled by the Stodderkonge or 'beggar king' for a town or district. Today, begging in Denmark is illegal under section 197 of the penal code, which reads:

{{poemquote|

Whoever, despite a police warning, makes himself guilty of begging, or who allows someone under 18, who belongs to his household, to beg, is to be punished with prison up to 6 months. If there are extenuating circumstances, the punishment may be omitted. A warning in the context of this law is valid for 5 years.

2) The requirement for a warning does not apply when the act was taken on a pedestrian street, by a station, in or by a supermarket or in public transportation.

3) When determining punishment, it should be considered an aggravating circumstance if the act was taken in one of the places mentioned in 2).

}}

{{cite web|title=(swedish) I Haag stoppade man tiggarna med förbud|publisher=Sveriges Television|url=http://www.svt.se}}{{cite web|url=http://www.themis.dk/searchinclude/Lovsamling/Straffeloven_kap_22.html |title=Straffeloven kap. 22 |language=da |access-date=2014-11-09 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141109042722/http://www.themis.dk/searchinclude/Lovsamling/Straffeloven_kap_22.html |archive-date=2014-11-09 }} Furthermore, begging which causes insecurity in the streets (so-called utryghedsskabende tiggeri) has a harsher penalty of up to 14 days prison.{{cite web |title=Vedtaget: Nu skal hjemløse 14 dage i fængsel for at tigge |url=https://nyheder.tv2.dk/politik/2017-06-14-vedtaget-nu-skal-hjemloese-14-dage-i-faengsel-for-at-tigge |website=TV2 |date=14 June 2017 |access-date=28 May 2020}}

Begging is illegal under the Vagrancy Act 1824. However, it does not carry a jail sentence and is not enforced in many cities,{{cite news|last=Bunyan|first=Nigel|date=2003-08-22|title=Beggar ban may spark nationwide crackdown|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=London|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1439443/Beggar-ban-may-spark-nationwide-crackdown.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1439443/Beggar-ban-may-spark-nationwide-crackdown.html |archive-date=2022-01-12 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|access-date=2010-04-26}}{{cbignore}} although since the act applies in all public places, it is enforced more frequently on public transport. Local authorities may issue public spaces protection orders for particular areas, making begging subject to a fine.{{cite news|date=19 April 2019|title=Huge increase in Public Spaces Protection Order fines|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-47982434|access-date=19 April 2019}}

Begging has been legal in Finland since 1987 when the poor law was invalidated. In 2003, the Public Order Act replaced local government rules and decriminalized begging.{{cite news|url=http://www.hs.fi/english/article/Authorities+powerless+to+act+against+beggars+with+children+in+tow+/1135229326508|title=Authorities powerless to act against beggars with children in tow|newspaper=Helsingin Sanomat|access-date=2009-10-27|archive-date=2014-06-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140629150527/http://www.hs.fi/english/article/Authorities+powerless+to+act+against+beggars+with+children+in+tow+/1135229326508|url-status=dead}}

A law against begging ended in 1994; however, begging with aggressive animals or children is still outlawed.

File:Alénya mendicité interdite.jpg, Département Pyrénées-Orientales, France.]]

Under article 407 of the Greek Penal Code, begging was punishable by up to 6 months in jail and up to a 3000 euro fine. However, this law was repealed in October 2018, after protests from street musicians in the city of Thessaloniki.{{cite news|url=https://www.lawspot.gr/nomika-nea/katargeitai-arthro-407-toy-poinikoy-kodika-gia-tin-epaiteia|title=Καταργείται το άρθρο 407 του Ποινικού Κώδικα για την επαιτεία|language=el|date=2018-10-30}}

Hungary has a nationwide ban. This may include stricter related laws in cities such as Budapest, which also prohibits picking things from rubbish bins.

Begging is criminalized in cities such as Mumbai and Delhi as per the Bombay Prevention of Begging Act, BPBA (1959).{{Cite web|url=http://delhi.gov.in/wps/wcm/connect/f2214e0043383b63b2d1f3cf71a315bd/THE+BOMBAY+PREVENTION+OF.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&lmod=-716342930&CACHEID=f2214e0043383b63b2d1f3cf71a315bd|title=The Bombay Prevention of Begging Act|year=1959}} Under this law, officials of the Social Welfare Department, assisted by the police, conduct raids to pick up beggars who they then try in special courts called 'beggar courts'. If convicted, they are sent to certified institutions called 'beggar homes', also known as Sewa Kutir, for a period ranging from one to ten years for detention, training and employment. The government of Delhi, besides criminalizing alms-seeking, has also criminalized almsgiving at traffic signals, to reduce the 'nuisance' of begging and ensure the smooth flow of traffic.

Aashray Adhikar Abhiyan and the People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) have criticized this Act and advocated for its repeal.{{Cite web|url=http://www.pucl.org/Topics/Industries-envirn-resettlement/2004/criminalise-poverty.htm|title=Criminalizing Poverty|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161012071651/http://www.pucl.org/Topics/Industries-envirn-resettlement/2004/criminalise-poverty.htm|archive-date=2016-10-12|url-status=dead}} Section 2(1) of the BPBA broadly defines 'beggars' as those individuals who directly solicit alms, as well as those who have no visible means of subsistence and are found wandering around. Therefore, as a result of the enforcement of this law, the homeless are often mistaken for beggars. Beggar homes, which are meant to provide vocational training, have often been found to have abysmal living conditions.

In 2018, the Delhi High Court declared 25 provisions of the Bombay Prevention of Begging Act (1959) as unconstitutional, following petitions filed by Harsh Mander and Karnika Sawhney.{{Cite news|last=Singh|first=Soibam Rocky|date=2018-08-08|title=Delhi High Court decriminalises begging in the national capital|language=en-IN|work=The Hindu|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Delhi/delhi-hc-decriminalises-begging-in-national-capital/article24631922.ece|access-date=2021-11-07|issn=0971-751X}} In 2021, the Supreme Court refused to ban begging and observed that begging was a socioeconomic problem.{{Cite web|title='Can't ban begging': SC issues notice to Centre, Delhi government for beggars' COVID vaccination|url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/delhi/2021/jul/27/cant-ban-begging-sc-issues-notice-to-centre-delhi-government-forbeggars-covid-vaccination-2336161.html|access-date=2021-11-07|website=The New Indian Express|date=27 July 2021 }}

"Passive" begging is legal in Ireland, but begging "in an aggressive, intimidating or threatening manner" is illegal, punishable by a fine. Gardaí (police) can also direct people begging in certain areas to move on, e.g. at an ATM, night safe, vending machine or shop entrance.{{Cite web|url=https://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/justice/criminal_law/criminal_offences/public_order_offenses_in_ireland.html|title=Public order offences|website=www.citizensinformation.ie}}

It is also illegal to "organise or direct someone else to beg;" under the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act 2011, punishable by a €200,000 fine or up to 5 years in prison; this law was adopted in response to organised begging by Romani gangs.{{Cite web|url=https://www.herald.ie/news/roma-begging-gangs-broken-up-27992042.html|title=Roma begging gangs broken up|website=herald}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.thejournal.ie/beggars-dublin-80-report-3287641-Mar2017/|title='It's only getting worse': Up to 80 beggars on Dublin's city streets at any one time|first=Garreth|last=MacNamee|website=TheJournal.ie|date=15 March 2017 }}{{Cite web|url=https://www.irishcentral.com/news/gangs-of-beggars-suspected-of-being-trafficked-into-ireland-from-romania|title=Gangs of beggars suspected of being trafficked into Ireland|date=December 26, 2017|website=IrishCentral.com}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.irishnews.com/news/northernirelandnews/2019/03/26/news/judge-hits-out-at-gang-of-professional-beggars-who-fly-in-and-out-of-romania-in-shifts-1582339/|title=Judge hits out at 'gang of professional beggars' who fly in and out of Romania in shifts|date=25 March 2019}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.irishcentral.com/news/irishvoice/irelands-big-street-begging-scam|title=Ireland's big street begging scam|date=March 29, 2019|website=IrishCentral.com}}

Prior to the 2011, begging was outlawed by the Vagrancy (Ireland) Act 1847, adopted during the Great Famine, until a 2007 High Court ruling said that it was too vague and incompatible with the Constitution of Ireland's protection of freedom of speech.{{Cite web|url=https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/begging-crackdown-law-comes-into-force-26645647.html|title=Begging crackdown law comes into force|website=independent|date=2 February 2011 }}{{Cite news|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/court-challenge-to-begging-law-succeeds-1.1292645|title=Court challenge to begging law succeeds|first=Mary|last=Carolan|newspaper=The Irish Times}}

Begging with children or animals is forbidden, but the law is not enforced.

Buddhist monks appear in public when begging for alms.{{cite web | url=http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/indepth/featuredarticles/kie/zen/kie_zen_01.html | publisher=Japan National Tourist Organisation | access-date=2008-07-27 | title=The Zen – Teaching of Mu }}

Most cases of begging are illegal. Especially, if it annoys someone, or bothers the traffic, or is for a personal purpose.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}}

Begging was made illegal in the historic city center of Riga in 2012. Begging in Riga outside the historic city center requires that the beggar carries ID.{{cite news |title=Begging in downtown Riga banned |url=https://www.baltictimes.com/news/articles/31638/ |access-date=4 May 2020 |work=The Baltic Times |date=2012-08-01}}

It is illegal to beg in the capital Vilnius. It is also illegal to give money to a beggar. Both can receive a fine of up to 2,000 litas (€770).{{cite news |title=Lithuania Cracks Down On Beggars And Almsgivers |url=https://www.salon.com/2011/12/05/lithuania_cracks_down_on_beggars_and_almsgivers/ |access-date=4 May 2020 |work=Salon|date=5 December 2011}}

Begging in Luxembourg is legal, except when it is indulged in as a group or the beggar is a part of an organised effort. According to Chachipe, a Roma rights advocacy NGO, 1639 begging cases were reported by Luxembourgish law enforcement authorities. Roma beggars were arrested, handcuffed, taken to police stations and held for hours and had their money confiscated.{{cite web|url=http://www.assembly.coe.int/Communication/01062012_GrothRoma_E.pdf |title=The situation of Roma in Europe: movement and migration |last=Groth |first=Annette |date=2012-06-01 |publisher=Council of Europe: Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons |access-date=14 April 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140605052431/http://www.assembly.coe.int/Communication/01062012_GrothRoma_E.pdf |archive-date=5 June 2014 }}

{{see also|Begging (Prohibition) Act, 1962}}

Although the Begging (Prohibition) Act was introduced in 1962,{{Cite web|url=http://www.ilo.org/dyn/natlex/natlex4.detail?p_lang=&p_isn=71667&p_classification=04|title=Nepal – Begging (Prohibition) Act, 1962.|website=ilo.org|access-date=2019-06-06}} this has not been enforced and the begging population in the capital, Kathmandu has since grown to over 5,000, according to police estimates.{{Cite web|url=http://kathmandupost.ekantipur.com/printedition/news/2014-08-13/beggar-population-swells-as-anti-begging-act-gathers-dust.html|title=Beggar population swells as anti-begging Act gathers dust|website=kathmandupost.ekantipur.com|access-date=2019-06-06}} Besides the common begging tricks such as asking for money or asking for milk which will be returned to the shop for money, there is a unique scam in Nepal which involves asking a foreigner to buy a shoe box at an inflated price. This shoe box is claimed to help provide a sustainable livelihood for the beggar but in fact, will be returned to the seller for money.{{Cite web|url=https://travelscams.org/asia/nepal/|title=21 Tourist targeted scams in Nepal|website=Travelscams.org|access-date=2019-06-06}}

Begging is banned in some counties and there were plans for a nationwide ban in 2015; however, this proposal was dropped after the Centre Party withdrew their support.

File:Visual_impairment1.jpg

Begging is prohibited in the Philippines under the Anti-Mendicancy Law of 1978 although this is not strictly enforced.{{cite news|last1=Borromeo|first1=Rene|title=Should you give to beggars? Cebu City's Anti-Mendicancy Campaign|url=http://www.philstar.com/cebu-news/2013/12/16/1268717/should-you-give-beggars-cebu-citys-anti-mendicancy-campaign|access-date=15 April 2015|publisher=The Freeman|date=16 December 2013|location=Cebu|language=ceb, en}}

In Poland, it is illegal to beg under the Code of petty offences, if they are able to hold a job or beg in public in a pressing or fraudulently (Article 58).[https://www.global-regulation.com/translation/poland/2986393/act-of-20-may-1971-the-code-of-offences.html Act Of 20 May 1971 The Code Of Offences] The beggar is due to a fine of €365.{{cite web |url=https://www.housingrightswatch.org/sites/default/files/2012-12-11_RPT_POLAND_anti_soc_laws_en.pdf|publisher=Housing RIghts Watch |access-date=5 May 2020}} Who tends to beg a minor or helpless person or dependant relative depending on him or dedicated under his custody, shall be punishable by detention, restriction of liberty or a fine (Article 104).

In Portugal, panhandlers normally beg in front of Catholic churches, at traffic lights or on special places in Lisbon or Porto downtowns. Begging is legal in Portugal. Many social and religious institutions support homeless people and panhandlers and the Portuguese Social Security normally gives them a survival monetary subsidy.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}}

Under the article 278 of the Qatari penal code, the maximum sentence for begging is one year. This sentence was increased from a maximum of three months before July 2006.{{Cite web|title=Al-Meezan 2|url=https://www.almeezan.qa/LawArticles.aspx?LawArticleID=870&LawID=26&language=en}} The alternative is housing in a specialized correctional facility. The money will be confiscated in any case.{{Cite web|title=Al Meezan|url=https://www.almeezan.qa/LawArticles.aspx?LawTreeSectionID=253&lawId=26&language=en}} This law is enforced, with a police division dedicated solely for that purpose.{{Cite news|title=Al-Arab News 1|newspaper=العرب القطرية |date=7 May 2018 |url=https://www.alarab.qa/story/1311398/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AF%D8%A7%D8%AE%D9%84%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%AA%D8%B3%D8%AA%D8%B9%D8%AF-%D8%A8%D8%AE%D8%B7%D8%A9-%D9%84%D9%85%D9%83%D8%A7%D9%81%D8%AD%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%B3%D9%88%D9%84-%D9%81%D9%8A-%D8%B1%D9%85%D8%B6%D8%A7%D9%86}}

Law 61 of 1991{{Cite web |title=LEGE (A) 61 27/09/1991 - Portal Legislativ |url=https://legislatie.just.ro/Public/DetaliiDocument/279788 |access-date=2024-05-30 |website=legislatie.just.ro}} forbids the persistent call for the mercy of the public, by a person who is able to work, although begging still remains widespread in the country.{{Cite web |last=Iorga |first=Mihai |date=2022-10-28 |title=E din nou plin de cerșetori pe străzi. Poliția Locală: Nu le mai dați bani! |url=https://stiridetimisoara.ro/e-din-nou-plin-de-cersetori-pe-strazi-politia-locala-nu-le-mai-dati-bani_46491.html |access-date=2024-05-30 |website=Stiri de Timisoara |language=ro-RO}}

US State Department Human Rights reports note a pattern of Roma children registered for "vagrancy and begging".{{cite web | publisher=U.S. Department of State | url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2005/61641.htm | title=Country Reports on Human Rights Practices – 2005 (Romania) | date=2006-03-08 | author = Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor| access-date=2006-09-29 }}

In parts of San Francisco, California, aggressive panhandling is prohibited.[http://www.ktvu.com/news/22805148/detail.html Debate Continues Over Proposed Sit-Lie Ordinance] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101202042802/http://www.ktvu.com/news/22805148/detail.html |date=2010-12-02 }}, KTVU, 10 March 2010

In May 2010, police in the city of Boston started cracking down on panhandling in the streets in downtown, and were conducting an educational outreach to residents advising them not to give to panhandlers. The Boston police distinguished active solicitation, or aggressive panhandling, versus passive panhandling of which an example is opening doors at a store with a cup in hand but saying nothing.Schuler, Melina, "Cops Planning to Combat Panhandling", The Boston Courant, May 14–20 issue, 2010. "Aggressive solicitation is against the law and is defined as an action that is likely to cause a reasonable person to fear harm or to intimidate him or her into compliance, Ivens said. Passive panhandling, like in front of a convenience store, is constitutionally allowed, however, it is a violation of a Boston ordinance to do it within 10 feet [3 m] of an ATM, bank, or check cashing business during hours of operation, [Boston Police Captain Paul] Ivens said."

U. S. Courts have repeatedly ruled that begging is protected by the First Amendment's free speech provisions. On August 14, 2013, the U. S. Court of Appeals struck down a Grand Rapids, Michigan, anti-begging law on free speech grounds.John Agar, "Michigan's begging law violates First Amendment: federal appeals court" [http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2013/08/michigans_begging_law_violates.html mlive.com] An Arcata, California, law banning panhandling within twenty feet of stores was struck down on similar grounds in 2012.{{cite news|last1=Romney|first1=Lee|title=Arcata panhandling law mostly struck down by judge: A Humboldt County judge says provisions of the ordinance banning non-aggressive panhandling within 20 feet of stores, intersections, parking lots and bus stops are unconstitutional.|url=https://www.latimes.com/local/la-xpm-2012-sep-27-la-me-arcata-panhandling-20120927-story.html|access-date=26 May 2016|work=Los Angeles Times|date=September 27, 2012}}

In Baltimore, Maryland, several non-profits have been working with the "squeegee kids" to get them off the streets instead of the police having to enforce the law and have the teens arrested.{{cite web |title=Squeegee collaborative working to better the lives of youth squeegee workers |url=https://www.wmar2news.com/news/local-news/squeegee-collaborative-working-to-better-the-lives-of-youth-squeegee-workers |website=www.wmar2news.com |date=27 December 2022 |access-date=28 December 2022}}{{cite news |title=A better way for Baltimore to help its 'squeegee kids' |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/08/12/better-way-baltimore-help-its-squeegee-kids/ |newspaper=Washington Post |access-date=28 December 2022}}

File:Homeless guy in Moscow.jpg

A 2002 study of 54 panhandlers in Toronto reported that of a median monthly income of $638 Canadian dollars (CAD) – those interviewed spent a median of $200 on food and $192 on alcohol, tobacco and illegal drugs.{{cite news | work=Canadian Medical Association Journal |author1=Bose, Rohit |author2=Hwang, Stephen W. |name-list-style=amp | title=Income and spending patterns among panhandlers | date=2002-09-03 | volume=167 |issue=5 |pages=477–479 |pmc = 121964}} The Fraser Institute criticized this study, citing problems with potential exclusion of lucrative forms of begging and the unreliability of reports from the panhandlers who were polled in the study.{{cite web | url=http://www.fraserinstitute.ca/canstats/readdetail.asp?id=406 | title=Begging for Data | publisher=Canstats | date=3 September 2002 | access-date=2006-09-29 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060420120833/http://www.fraserinstitute.ca/canstats/readdetail.asp?id=406 | archive-date=20 April 2006 }}

In North America, panhandling money is widely reported to support substance abuse and other addictions. For example, outreach workers in downtown Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, surveyed that city's panhandling community and determined that approximately three-quarters use some of the donated money to buy tobacco products, while two-thirds buy solvents or alcohol.{{cite journal|url=http://www.downtownwinnipegbiz.com/inc/app/winnipegbiz/data/CFTB_factsheet.pdf |journal=Downtown Winnipeg Biz|title='Change for the Better' fact sheet |access-date=2006-09-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060813220022/http://www.downtownwinnipegbiz.com/inc/app/winnipegbiz/data/CFTB_factsheet.pdf |archive-date=2006-08-13 |url-status=dead }}

Because of concerns that people begging on the street may use the money to support alcohol or drug abuse, some advise those wishing to give to beggars to give gift cards or vouchers for food or services, and not cash.{{cite journal | url=https://www.academia.edu/2961622 | title=Evaluation study of the Oxford Begging Initiative | publisher=Oxford City Council | access-date=2013-10-25| last1=Wahlstedt | first1=Eero }}{{cite journal|last=Johnsen & Fitzpatrick|first=S. & S.|title=Revanchist Sanitisation or Coercive Care? The Use of Enforcement to Combat Begging, Street Drinking and Rough Sleeping in England|journal=Urban Studies|year=2010|volume=47|issue=8|pages=1703–1723|doi=10.1177/0042098009356128|bibcode=2010UrbSt..47.1703J |s2cid=154772918}}{{cite book |last=Hermer |first=J. |date=1999 |title=Policing compassion: 'Diverted Giving' on the Winchester High Street |url=http://focus.library.utoronto.ca/works/4388 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20131025070808/http://focus.library.utoronto.ca/works/4388 |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 25, 2013 |location=Bristol |publisher=The Policy Press |isbn=978-1861341556 |access-date=2013-10-25 }}{{cite web | url=http://www.portlandalliance.com/downtown_services/real-change.html | title=Real Change, not Spare Change | publisher=Portland Business Alliance | access-date=2006-09-30 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20061113185159/http://www.portlandalliance.com/downtown_services/real-change.html| archive-date= 13 November 2006 | url-status= live}}{{cite journal|last=Dromi|first=Shai M.|title=Penny for your Thoughts: Beggars and the Exercise of Morality in Daily Life|journal=Sociological Forum|year=2012|volume=27|issue=4|pages=847–871|doi=10.1111/j.1573-7861.2012.01359.x|url=http://osf.io/2fn99/}} Some shelters also offer business cards with information on the shelter's location and services, which can be given in lieu of cash.{{cite web | url=http://www.gwu.edu/~peace_st/homelessness.html | publisher=George Washington University | author=Peace Studies Program | access-date=2006-09-30 | title=Homelessness Contact Cards | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20060909032358/http://www.gwu.edu/~peace_st/homelessness.html| archive-date= 9 September 2006 | url-status= live}}

There are many depictions of beggars in fine art.[https://arthistoryteachingresources.org/lessons/disability-in-art-history/ Disability in Art History]

File:Ivan Yermenyov. Singing beggars.jpg|The Singing Beggars by Russian painter Ivan Yermenyov c. 1775

Image:National-Debt-Gillray.jpeg|In a 1786 James Gillray caricature, the plentiful money bags handed to King George III are contrasted with the beggar whose legs and arms were amputated, in the left corner

File:DV271 Portrait of a Blind Begger, Glamorganshire.jpg|Portrait of a Blind Beggar, Glamorganshire, George Orleans Delamotte, 1818

File:Tiggarfamilj vid landsvägen.jpg|Beggar family at the road, by Robert Wilhelm Ekman, 1860

File:Twis-05.jpg|"The Man with the Twisted Lip", illustrated by Sidney Paget 1891, a beggar playing a major role in a Sherlock Holmes adventure.

File:OldBeggar1.jpg|Louis Dewis, "The Old Beggar", Bordeaux, France, 1916

• Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, accepted alms from people to survive{{cite web |url=http://www.religionfacts.com/buddhism/things/begging_bowl.htm |title=Begging Bowl - Buddhist Things |website=ReligionFacts |access-date=2011-12-05 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111205034356/http://www.religionfacts.com/buddhism/things/begging_bowl.htm |archive-date=2011-12-05 }}
• Bampfylde Moore Carew, the self-styled "King of the Beggars"
• Qiao Feng, a fictional character in Jin Yong's wuxia Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils
• Hong Qigong, a fictional character in Jin Yong's wuxia Legend of the Condor Heroes
• So Chan, a Chinese folk hero of Drunken Fist
• Diogenes of Sinope, a Greek philosopher
• Dobri Dobrev, a Bulgarian ascetic and philanthropist
• Gallicina, the mendicant Darotti is accused of murdering in Susan Palwick's novel, The Necessary Beggar (2005)
• Nicholas Jennings, characterized as a rogue, in Thomas Harman's A Caveat for Common Cursitors
• Jesus, the founder of Christianity, despised materialism and encouraged an ascetic life{{Cite journal |last=Marshall |first=I. Howard |date=2002-04-16 |title=Jesus outside the New Testament: An Introduction to the Ancient Evidence by Robert E. Van Voorst (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000. xiv = 248 pp. pb. $22.00/£12.99. ISBN 0-8028-4368-9) |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/27725472-07402014 |journal=Evangelical Quarterly |volume=74 |issue=2 |pages=191–192 |doi=10.1163/27725472-07402014 |issn=0014-3367}}{{Cite book |title=Robert E. Van Voorst, Jesus outside the New Testament, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2000. pp. 65-66}}{{Cite web |title=Mark 6:8 {{!}} English Standard Version :: ERF Bibleserver |url=https://www.bibleserver.com/ESV/Mark6 |access-date=2022-02-26 |website=www.bibleserver.com |language=en}}
• Lazarus, a Biblical character described in the Gospel of Luke, in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus (also called the Dives and Lazarus or Lazarus and Dives)
• "The Man with the Twisted Lip", the titular character of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's eponymous Sherlock Holmes short story
• Gavroche Thenardier, a fictional character in Victor Hugo's novel Les Misérables
• Wu Xun, was a Chinese wandering beggar and educational reformer
• Zhu Yuanzhang, the founder of the Ming Dynasty

{{div col|colwidth=30em}}

• Begging behavior in animals
• Begging letter
• Belisarius
• Busking
• Child Begging
• Fundraising
• Garbage picking
• Mendicant Orders
• Street fundraising

{{div col end}}

{{Reflist|30em}}

• Malanga, Steven, [http://city-journal.org/2008/18_3_panhandling.html The Professional Panhandling Plague] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080826133416/http://www.city-journal.org/2008/18_3_panhandling.html |date=2008-08-26 }}, City Journal, vol. 18, no. 3, Summer 2008, The Manhattan Institute, New York, NY.
• {{Cite web |last=Narkewicz |first=David J. |date=October 2019 |title=A Downtown Northampton for Everyone: Residents, Visitors, Merchants, and People At-Risk: Mayor's Work Group on Panhandling Study Report |url=http://www.northamptonma.gov/DocumentCenter/View/13414/Mayors-Work-Group-on-Panhandling-Study-Report---October-2019 |format=PDF |location=Northampton, Massachusetts, US |access-date=2019-12-24 |archive-date=2020-01-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200120095239/http://northamptonma.gov/DocumentCenter/View/13414/Mayors-Work-Group-on-Panhandling-Study-Report---October-2019 |url-status=dead }} A detailed report by a city in Western Massachusetts, US.
• Sandage, Scott A., [https://books.google.com/books?id=XPRbV0JeBecC Born Losers: A History of Failure in America], Harvard University Press, 2005

{{Commons category|Begging}}

{{Wikiquote}}

{{Wiktionary|begging|spanging|panhandling|mendicancy}}

{{Wikivoyage|Begging}}

• Rooney, Emily, [https://web.archive.org/web/20140811033957/http://www.wgbh.org/programs/The-Emily-Rooney-Show-854/episodes/Tues-6512Panhandling--Public-Nuisance-Or-Basic-Right-39140 "Panhandling—Public Nuisance or Basic Right?"], The Emily Rooney Show, WGBH-FM Radio, Boston, Tuesday, June 5, 2012. Guests: Vincent Flanagan, Executive Director of Homeless Empowerment Project Spare Change News; Robert Haas, Cambridge Police Commissioner; Denise Jillson, President of the Harvard Square Business Association
• [http://www.popcenter.org/problems/panhandling/4 Selected legal cases on panhandling] in the United States, University of Albany Center for Problem Oriented Policing.

{{Authority control}}

Category:Homelessness