Daily news
Tuesday, 28 september 2010
New laws to control begging
Disabled children particularly vulnerable:
Rasika Somarathna
Authorities will take a stringent approach and formulate new laws to halt organized child begging.
Child Development and Women’s Affairs Minister Tissa Karalliyadda yesterday said that the authorities had been advised to strictly enforce laws with stringent punishment for those who lure or force children into begging.
“If the existing legal framework is not adequate to deal with matters effectively the Government is prepared to introduce new laws,” he added.
The Minister said that around 10 to 15 years back there were around 20,000 child beggars in the country. The figure has come down drastically due to multiple efforts, he added.
However, the Minister said that it was brought to his notice that certain organized racketeers were behind forced child begging.
These groups take advantage of localized festivities such as the Kandy Perahera, Kataragama Perahera, the Poson season in Anuradhapura and transport child beggars, he added.
The Minister was of the opinion that there were shortcomings in the legal framework and that measures were afoot to fill these loopholes.
According to the Minister, the Police would play a major role in the exercise. The setting up of a separate unit to deal with child abuses within stations has been a part of these efforts.
The affected children are to be given protection, rehabilitation, education and other support. The Minister said local authorities and enforcement agencies should be more vigilant against organized begging. According to experts begging is the street occupation that places children at most risk in Sri Lanka today. Disabled children are considered particularly vulnerable. Some children are forced to beg by outsiders and some others by their own parents.
These children are often abused and have no opportunity for schooling or play.
@RAIHAN@
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
The Little beggars
These days, being a beggar has become a type of job. Large streets and small alleys, you can see them everywhere. Basically, they are all organized and disciplined. and wide in variety. The young ones organize behind the scenes so that the children and old people go beg, not for food, but for money. For some, if you give them food, not only will he refuse, he will also yell at you. The money they beg for must be handed over to those above them. Even worse, the phenomenon of holding onto young girls and not letting them go in order to successfully get money happens too often. Dealing with beggars has become a kind of burden. Dealing with one group after another, it is truly annoying. What makes people feel the most unhappy is using children only a few years old to go beg. Doing this is a kind of abuse towards children, a kind of destruction, that will result in great harm to their growth and psychological health. Because of phenomenon like this, all of society should pay more attention towards children beggars, and safeguard children’s lawful rights and interests. Towards those manipulating behind the scenes, society should also investigate responsibility, so that these children can live, learn, and grow up healthy like normal children.
*LIYANA MUHAMMAD*
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Family background-child beggar
Although begging is illegal it does not carry a jail sentence under the Vagrancy Act 1824. Many people begin to beg because they are not receiving benefits when they first start to sleep rough. There has long been a strong relationship between begging, substance misuse and poor physical and mental health. Beggars have generally experienced a disruptive family background, substance abuse, exclusion from the labour market and institutionalisation and often have an acute lack of self-esteem. Many beggars have at some time found themselves victims of violence and harassment from the public.
~~PENADOLZZ~~
Saturday, August 28, 2010
what is begging..??
Begging is the solicitation of money or food, especially in the street. There is a close relationship between begging and homelessness and homeless charity Crisis estimates that over 80 per cent of beggars are homeless. People who beg are among the most vulnerable in society, often trapped in poverty and deprivation, and it is regarded as a risky and demeaning activity.
Begging is visible on the streets of many British towns and most of the public report seeing someone begging in a public place at least once a week. Research carried out by the University of Glasgow found that begging was overwhelmingly driven by need rather than greed, although the apparently increasing prevalence of begging is coupled with an increasing perception that beggars, rather than being homeless and hungry, use the money they receive to support their addiction to drugs or alcohol. *suzana*....
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Sunday, August 1, 2010
6 Burmese children forced to work as beggars in Malaysia
Tuesday, 20 April 2010 04:34
6 Burmese children who were forced to work as beggars and were arrested and sent to Tanah Merah camp in Kelantan province, Northern Malaysia had contacted and asked for help from Burmese associations based in Thailand.
Kyaw Thu Lin, one of the 6 children, is 12 years old and the son of U Zaw Lin and Daw Aye Mya Sein from Madaya Township, Mandalay division. Kyaw Thu Lin said that, U Mae Lon, a muslin man from Mandalay told him that he can get job at tea shop but brought him to Malaysia and forced him to work as a beggar instead.
"We were made to ask for money at bus stations and traffic lights. We had to beg until we got 100 Ringgit a day. We could usually get at least 70 to 80 Ringgits a day but we would be beaten and we were not given enough food to eat on the days when we got nothing. I had to work as a beggar for at least 3 months before I was arrested by the police and brought to this camp almost 9 months ago. Here we are also not provided with enough food to eat. We are only given dried fish soup. Please save us as soon as possible and let my mother know". He cried.
Aung Ko Win, another 12 year old victim, the son of U Tha Hlaing and Daw Myo Myo Sein from Hlaing Tharyar Town of Yangon division explained "U Atit, a Muslim and his wife Ma Aye Yee told my parents that I could get a job selling newspapers in Yangon and they gave 20,000 Kyats to my mother. When I arrived in Malaysia, I was forced to work as a beggar and forced to make 100 Ringgits daily. I was beaten if I couldn't get the money. My keepers only gave me boiled eggs to eat and we never got enough rice. It's the same here also. Please take us back" he said.
U Myo Naing who is in charge of the foreign relations department of the Association of Burmese in Thailand, a Bangkok based Burmese organization said "We are not organization of many finds but we help where we can with our own contributions. This is a big issue which our small group alone cannot handle but we are a member of the Mae Khong region labour and NGOs network so we will report this to bigger organizations in our network and cooperate with them. We also need the help of other contacts to find the parents of these children" he said.
Among those 6, Min Yu San (14), prisoner No: 53545 from Dhala Township of Yangon division is the eldest. Tin Myo Htet (53329) from Pantanaw, Irrawaddy division, Kyaw Thu Lin (53546) from Madaya Township, Mandalay division. Nay Li Oo (53544) and Aung Ko Win (52679) from Hlaing Tharyar Town of Yangon division are around 12 years old. Ma Aye Mya Htwe the only girl is around 10 years old and is younger than Kyaw Thu Lin but she is his aunt.
@raihan@
6 Burmese children forced to work as beggars in Malaysia
Tuesday, 20 April 2010 04:34
6 Burmese children who were forced to work as beggars and were arrested and sent to Tanah Merah camp in Kelantan province, Northern Malaysia had contacted and asked for help from Burmese associations based in Thailand.
Kyaw Thu Lin, one of the 6 children, is 12 years old and the son of U Zaw Lin and Daw Aye Mya Sein from Madaya Township, Mandalay division. Kyaw Thu Lin said that, U Mae Lon, a muslin man from Mandalay told him that he can get job at tea shop but brought him to Malaysia and forced him to work as a beggar instead.
"We were made to ask for money at bus stations and traffic lights. We had to beg until we got 100 Ringgit a day. We could usually get at least 70 to 80 Ringgits a day but we would be beaten and we were not given enough food to eat on the days when we got nothing. I had to work as a beggar for at least 3 months before I was arrested by the police and brought to this camp almost 9 months ago. Here we are also not provided with enough food to eat. We are only given dried fish soup. Please save us as soon as possible and let my mother know". He cried.
Aung Ko Win, another 12 year old victim, the son of U Tha Hlaing and Daw Myo Myo Sein from Hlaing Tharyar Town of Yangon division explained "U Atit, a Muslim and his wife Ma Aye Yee told my parents that I could get a job selling newspapers in Yangon and they gave 20,000 Kyats to my mother. When I arrived in Malaysia, I was forced to work as a beggar and forced to make 100 Ringgits daily. I was beaten if I couldn't get the money. My keepers only gave me boiled eggs to eat and we never got enough rice. It's the same here also. Please take us back" he said.
U Myo Naing who is in charge of the foreign relations department of the Association of Burmese in Thailand, a Bangkok based Burmese organization said "We are not organization of many finds but we help where we can with our own contributions. This is a big issue which our small group alone cannot handle but we are a member of the Mae Khong region labour and NGOs network so we will report this to bigger organizations in our network and cooperate with them. We also need the help of other contacts to find the parents of these children" he said.
Among those 6, Min Yu San (14), prisoner No: 53545 from Dhala Township of Yangon division is the eldest. Tin Myo Htet (53329) from Pantanaw, Irrawaddy division, Kyaw Thu Lin (53546) from Madaya Township, Mandalay division. Nay Li Oo (53544) and Aung Ko Win (52679) from Hlaing Tharyar Town of Yangon division are around 12 years old. Ma Aye Mya Htwe the only girl is around 10 years old and is younger than Kyaw Thu Lin but she is his aunt.
Friday, July 30, 2010
CHILD BEGGARS EXPLOITED, BEATEN AND MAKING A SMALL FORTUNE
Child beggars exploited, beaten and making a small fortune - for others
By Connie Levett Herald Correspondent In Bangkok
August 13, 2005
Page Too
A new snapshot of the begging trade in Bangkok shows a business built on children trafficked from Cambodia and Burma who never profit personally from their lucrative daily takings and are sometimes beaten to make them objects of greater pity.
No one can say how many children are begging in the Thai capital but the three-month survey of the trade earlier this year shows children aged from three months to 10 years are working long hours in tourist destinations and busy business precincts. A handler sits close by in a small business, perhaps selling flowers, and regularly collecting the cash.
"It is like they are enslaved children. To be forced to work is one of the worst forms of humiliation," said Ealkak Loomchomkhae, a legal officer with the Mirror Foundation, the Thai non-government organisation that ran the study. The findings are set out in a report released with the International Labour Organisation last week, Child Beggar Business - Investigating Children in the Beggar Business.
The survey, during which researchers observed the beggars at four central Bangkok locations for three months, proved "this was not normal begging, it was a business", Mr Ealkak said via a translator.
It is a lucrative trade, with children making between 500 baht ($15.80) and 3000 baht a day for their brokers. They receive only basic food and accommodation. A shop assistant earns 6000 baht a month.
The survey showed old women carrying very young children or babies, one old woman with a different child each day or the same children with a different mother. Rarely did the children speak Thai: most of them came from Cambodia or Burma. The brokers got the children from poor families in the border regions by buying, renting or kidnapping them, Mr Ealkak said.
"They talk to the parents, offer them 3000 to 7000 baht-a-month rent for a child. They want children from three months to 10 years old because that is the age that appeals to passers-by," he said.
Urban myths abound in Bangkok of beggar children whose hands have been cut off to make them more lucrative. "I've heard about cutting off the hands but I've never seen it," Mr Ealkak said. "I did see pinching, hitting with wood, punching. It can be interpreted as a way to control the children; but also, when people see scars and bruises, it melts the hearts and it's evident these children make more money."
While the number of beggar children working in Bangkok is hard to quantify, Mr Ealkak said hundreds have been rescued and rehabilitated. Before a child is sent home, NGOs and the ministry evaluate the family. "If they believe they will sell the children again, they will not send them back."
He said the situation for beggar children had improved in that it was now seen as a problem. "When I started working with beggars [three years ago], nobody worked on it. Now there are more organisations paying attention." In July, the Royal Thai Police set up a division focused protecting children and women. Lieutenant-General Kumronwit Thoopkrajong, the division's commander, said through a translator that the beggar children would be treated as "victims, not as criminals".
"The laws about begging say if one person makes another, especially a child, beg for money, they violate the law," he said.
"You can go to prison for up to five years for making money off a kid as a beggar."
~~...PENADOL...~~(>.<)
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
beggars among the children
Tuesday April 6, 2010
Begging runs in the family
KLANG: Their grandmothers were beggars, so were their mothers. Now it is their turn to take to the streets.
This seems to be the way a Myanmar community here has taken to make a living.
Their grandparents were among thousands who entered the country as refugees from Myanmar in the 1970s.
For many Klang residents, the sight of groups of female beggars holding babies in their arms in the North Klang bus terminal area used to be a common sight for decades.
During the early years, the beggars and their babies would sit on a pedestrian bridge that connected Jalan Pos to the former Great Wall shopping complex.
Starting young: A child begging for money in Klang.
Their older children would be roaming around and begging in the vicinity of the busy terminal area and a former food court which has now become Plaza MPK.
Forty years have passed and Starprobe has discovered that successive generations have taken over the “trade.”
Checks revealed that the offspring including children and grandchildren – some as young as five – are now plying the streets.
A mother of five, when approached, admitted she used to beg with her mother as a young girl. Now her own children are following in her footsteps.
The 28-year-old woman, who declined to be named, said her mother stopped begging when she (the daughter) was in her teens and old enough to hit the streets on her own.
“My mother now stays at home and does the house work,” she said.
Confirming that subsequent generations were taking over from their parents, Klang Consumer Association president A. Devadass said he recognised at least one of the beggars who had inherited the “trade” from her mother.
He said the woman used to accompany her mother when she was small. Now she was begging with her own children.
“I knew her since she was a child. She recognised me as I used to talk to her those days,” Devadass, who helps the refugees, added.
The beggars, whose numbers could go up to 50 during weekends and public holidays, have become part and parcel of the hustle and bustle life in this part of the town.
While the children move freely around these areas, their mothers often place themselves on the pavement in front of a row of shops at Jalan Pos.
Some of these beggars will also occupy the open space around the bus terminal area.
Most of them will arrive at the area with their children at about lunchtime and stay on till 9pm. They start in the mornings during weekends and public holidays.
They can take home a substantial amount during the weekends and public holidays due to the heavy flow of people and long hours.
Starprobe discovered that some of the women deliberately got pregnant so that they could have babies to cuddle in their arms, an effective strategy to get the public to donate.
“I’m sure you will feel pity for the baby and offer me some cash. Otherwise, you may chase me away,” said one of them when casually asked why many of these beggars had babies.
She added that they were the real mothers and the babies were not hired as some people suspected.
What is not established is who the fathers of the children are. It is learnt that most of the mothers are without husbands.
Devadass said the men supposedly leave their “wives” and get engaged with new partners frequently.
A child beggar, when asked about her father’s whereabouts, said: “My father is dead.”
Devadass said some of the men would stay at home as they felt they did not need to do the hard and dirty work of begging.
“The men apparently rely on the labour of their wives and children,” he said.
*suzana*
