The Philippines is a beautiful country - that's true - but, in most cases, only to places where tourists are meant to be; to luxurious hotels, resorts, and mega cities where the riches and the middle class hang out. However, if you have been gone to any of the Philippines' poorest areas, especially those in or near mega cities such as Manila and Cebu, you may have observed a number of beggars living their lives in the streets asking for food or money from passersby.
If you happen to cross one, would you give them food or money? If yes, thank you for having a good heart. If no, you're on the same boat as me.
Why I Don't Give Alms To Street Beggars
Living one of the Philippines' most highly urbanized cities, it is not uncommon for me to cross some beggars on the streets. Some even used their creativity and hand you envelopes with a message asking for monetary help inside the jeepney you are riding. In most cases, I don't give them anything. That's unless they won't get out of your way unless you give them something - which is really annoying. And there are several reasons why I dont.
There's this Mendicancy Law in Effect
According the the Section 5 of the Mendicancy Law of 1978, mendicancy and habitual mendicancy is a criminal liability and is punishable by imprisonment of up to 4 years. Furthermore, any person caught abetting mendicancy and giving alms directly to mendicants or beggars, has committed a criminal liability and shall be punished by a fine of PhP 20.00. (The punishments shall be updated, really)
This means that giving alms to a beggar is basically feeding someone who has a criminal liability. I am not against the law, to be honest, as it is stated there that mendicancy breeds crime, creates traffic hazards, endangers health, and exposes mendicants to indignities and degradation.You may read more on the law here.
Most Beggars Do Not Have Physical Disabilities
This hits me. Begging is not and will never be a means of living. Most beggars asking you charity are physically fit with no visible disabilities. And if you ask them why they are on the streets being a mendicant, they will probably answer you they could not find a job, or that they are simply very poor. Either answers are invalid reasons for mendicancy.
I strongly do not believe that there are no other means of earning money aside from begging. I do not deny the fact that some of the Filipinos are below the poverty line. In fact, 1 in 5 Filipinos were reportedly poor in 2015. But even that is not enough alibi to not look for other opportunities.
The infamous Smokey Mountain in Manila has been known to be a place of Filipinos far below the poverty line. In that place, even electricity is a luxury. However, they are not losing ways of earning enough money for survival. Most of them finds leftover food from restaurants and fast food chains in the mountains of trashes. They cook them, and sell them to the neighborhood. Then they're earning!
This cooked previously thrown leftover food are called pagpag as shown below:
There Are A Lot of Other Ways To Survive/Earn Other Than Begging
Begging does not definitely do good to the country, to the people, and to the beggars themselves. Also, trying to help a beggar by giving them the alms they're asking is not really helping them. You helped them get through the day, sure, but you are just giving them the idea that begging is feasible. You are just making them believe that they can earn by just walking through the streets of the city asking passersby money.
I believe in order to truly help them, we shall not provide to them. And since then, they will look for a better, more legal ways of earning money, and surviving. There are limitless opportunities. There are limitless ways and means of living. They just have to do to alleviate themselves from poverty. If you were born poor, it is not your fault. But if you die poor, it is.
“It takes nothing to stay in poverty, but everything to break free from it.”
―Idowu Koyenikan
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