Beggary: Killing with kindness

Head of PPP Media Cell
Beggary is though illegal activity under Anti-Beggary Act, 1958, and yet you are confronted with horde of beggars at important crossings of Lahore and other big cities right under the nose of traffic wardens who are required to facilitate smooth trafficking. Beggars ask for money and thus disturb the flow of traffic to the dismay of all of us. They start knocking at the side window of your car that sometimes is so unexpected and intense giving you the sudden shock as if someone has hit himself against your vehicle. The extended hand of the beggar offsets the anxiety with a pinch of anger. Also, a modicum of solace comes by because the car has not been hit by an outside object of the frightening size. The hammer-like knocking of the beggar drives you crazy but humane sentiments overpower the likely bitter reaction. At the same time, you prefer to move your car a bit forward to signal reluctance.
Meanwhile, the traffic signal turns green and off you drive to your destination avoiding your vehicle from the other beggars seemingly getting ready to make an assault on you. But, it seems as if they are programmed to clear the road swiftly with the change of traffic light by zig-zagging between the cars to come back to their place and wait for the next red traffic light to repeat the exercise till the dusk.
If you go to mosque for Friday prayer, the beggars outside the mosque will make your exit problematic especially because their stalking of you will not come to end unless you oblige them. Your attempt to get rid of one of them by giving money would bring more discomforts for you because others would throng towards you finding yourself in a similar situation when a minister is besieged by angry workers of the Party condemning him for not paying heed to their problems like arranging employment for their siblings, upgradation of schools and road network and sewerage system, so on and so forth. A few beggars would invoke your sympathies by improvising disabled persons in amazing manners, others carrying doctors’ prescriptions asking for money to buy medicines, yet others would present themselves as hungry but would only accept hard cash instead of food offered by you from the nearby tandoor. It is better not to give money to these least deserving people for two reasons. Firstly, the money given by you will embolden beggary in the society that is curse. Secondly, it is “like killing them by your kindness.”
It is the responsibility of the government to look after the disabled people of the society. Civil society cannot absolve itself from the same responsibility because it owes to such category of people an honourable and dignified life. It is equally the responsibility of the modern welfare state to undertake the role of motherly-figurehead and look after the needy people. The enforcement in absolute terms is only possible after these categories of people are guaranteed a fair deal of livable conditions to lead a life like a dignified citizenry. The previous PPP government introduced the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) as a social security programme for the poor providing cover to millions of such families. The law enforcement agencies after the implementation of BISP should ensure that beggars are not visible on the roads, streets, mosques, mausoleums, market places etc. Unfortunately, their number has increased instead. The new government of PML-N is also continuing the programme (BISP) due to its spectacular reach to the poorest of the poor.
Those who are healthy and do not fall in the category of disabled or needy should be arrested and put in confinement where they should be imparted professional training in different skills enabling them to earn their living. They should not be allowed to become parasite or scavengers. The facility of counseling should also be available to them as a part of their rehabilitation to convince them earning livelihood through hard work is better option for their future and self-respect. Such trained people could become useful citizens playing their role in the development of the country with little attention of the government. The strict adherence to this course of action by the state will result in propitious multiplying effects leading to the breaking of the vicious circle of beggary sooner than later. The presence of beggars in large number in a society brings ignominy for the nation because it is viewed by the international visitors as the nation of the destitute.
The image of the society and the country gets nosedived and indeed our heads hang in shame. Our position becomes miserable in the foreign countries in particular where we are scared of disclosing the identity of the country of our origin. The scourge of terrorism and extremism juxtaposed with polio virus-ridden country and abject poverty, we cannot escape ourselves from the inevitable umbrage.
The members of the civil society have to take the ownership of uprooting this scourge that is not acceptable in any form and manifestation. The dishing out of money to beggars by the people is certainly encouraging those who are responsible for stigmatising the nation. They should be discouraged by not giving them money because their refusal will put them out of their sordid business. The roads, streets, places of worship and mausoleums would give look worthy of their dignity and respect. Those who are desirous of giving donations should give it to the well known philanthropist and charity organisations, Edhi, Shaukat Khanum, CHIPPA and so many more. Money donated to such organisations will be spent for the people who deserve the most because the welfare organisations have unblemished track record of serving poor people of this country. As we say, put the money where the mouth is. Giving money to beggars is double jeopardy because the money so given will be analogous to going down the drain with negative implications for the society. Secondly, we are contributing to make the society a society of beggars. Good intentions should not pave the way to the hell.
Cold wave goes down the spine when we come to know as how the mafias trained the abducted and stray children to become beggars. They torture innocents to twist their limbs, put them on drugs on purpose and ruined their inner-self. Their limbs are disabled over a period of time, they are tortured to instill fear of their handler, and their mental growth is made devoid of moral values in absolute terms. Those who tend to oblige them out of religious or social duty are in fact throwing the kidnapped and stray children before wolves. The members of the civil society and media should focus on this gruesome aspect of beggary.
The enforcement of law is abjectly miserable in all areas of day-to-day life, whether it is enforcement of traffic rules, law and order, prices control, food adulteration, sanitation, cleansing of city streets and roads and more. It is complete royal mess and the mandarins are apparently inured and as such don’t care and conveniently leaving the jungle at the mercy of jungle laws — not suitable for human habitat. Administrators are enjoying life in their smug cocoons built on oasis. Their privileges and perks are immensely satisfying. They would like not to take even the calculated risk of bringing improvement in an environment simply because paradigm shift may bring admonishment of the top people.
Government functionaries cannot afford the risk of innovation for the sake of their self-preservation. Becoming conduit of bringing qualitative change at the altar of their taking risk of losing prestigious position is not worthwhile proposition to pursue in their assessment. An administrator is unable to overcome the fear of unpredictable consequences in his bid to cleanse the mad house. The application of new techniques destined for bringing change for the better is not his cherished domain who would rather prefer to follow the archaic and established norms regardless of their futility.
So, we have to learn to endure the situation that cannot be cured till the chief executive, energised by the political will, does not take remedial measures of zero-tolerance for this curse. The law is there. The Lahore High Court Judgment, 2011, directed the government to take strict measures to discourage beggary but the heavy presence of beggars in the cities explodes in the face of law enforcement agencies. Law minus enforcement is more dangerous than without it.
muhammadshaheedi@yahoo.com