Despite the ban on begging, the practice continues in some areas, especially during Ramadan.
The Criminal Investigation Department, in a recent statement, said that they had detained 26 people engaged in begging from different parts of Qatar since the beginning of Ramadan.
A group of female overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) told Gulf Times that a week ago, two men, in their early 30s, approached them and asked for money.
“We were chatting outside a building on Airport Road when the two came and told us that they had no money to buy food,” one of the Filipinos said, adding: “They were in their thirties. They did not look like beggars at all.”
“We gave them QR20, but one of the men wanted QR150, saying that they were saving cash to buy plane tickets so they could go back home.”
They claimed that they were fired from work as labourers without receiving anything from their respective
employers.
A resident of the Matar Qadeem area said that three people came to his house the other day and asked for money.
“They told us they haven’t had their dinner so I gave them QR10 each,” he said.
Some gangs “operate” in parking lots of supermarkets and approach shoppers for money. They usually “work” in groups of two. Some of them go from one commercial building to another around 5-6pm,
asking for money.
Mohamed, an expatriate worker, feels they are more like conmen than actual beggars.
“I usually give money to beggars, especially to old people but not to those who seem healthy and young,” said Mohamed, who stays in Al Hilal. “Instead of begging, they should work to earn money.”
Ed Alcantara, adviser of Foundation for Family and Life (FFL) of migrant workers, believes that many of these individuals, young and old, are taking advantage of people’s generosity during the fasting month. Alcantara said he saw many such “beggars” in the Souq area.
“I don’t know if they are really beggars or members of a syndicate but what I know is that begging is prohibited in Qatar,” he added.
A resident of Mansoura said a woman in abaya knocks on the doors of the flats in his building “time to time”.
“I don’t know whether it is the same person or not as she has a face veil. She asks for money in Arabic and the only word I understand is ‘miskin’,” said an Indian expatriate. “My guess is that she is a member of a gang engaged in the begging business, exploiting the generous nature of the local
population.”
The Ministry of Interior has opened hotlines for reporting beggars. Patrols are also dispatched to monitor the streets of Doha round the clock during Ramadan.
Brigadier Mosaffar Ali al-Hababi, director of the Department of Criminal Investigation, said they had set up a plan to fight begging during Ramadan covering the
different places.
Hotlines are: 2347453, 2347444 and 66414040.
He said that a number of foreign beggars who had entered Qatar on tourist visas were recently arrested by authorities.
Captain Mansoor al-Khiyarain, head of the section for combating begging, said that the patrols would cover areas like commercial complexes, markets and where mosques are located.
He urged people to give their donations to charity organisations, saying that begging is a negative phenomenon
involving fraud.
Captain al-Khiyarain asked all citizens and residents to co-operate and call the Department of Criminal Investigation on the three hotlines to report begging cases.
Despite the ban on begging, the practice continues in some areas, especially during Ramadan.
The Criminal Investigation Department, in a recent statement, said that they had detained 26 people engaged in begging from different parts of Qatar since the beginning of Ramadan.
A group of female overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) told Gulf Times that a week ago, two men, in their early 30s, approached them and asked for money.
“We were chatting outside a building on Airport Road when the two came and told us that they had no money to buy food,” one of the Filipinos said, adding: “They were in their thirties. They did not look like beggars at all.”
“We gave them QR20, but one of the men wanted QR150, saying that they were saving cash to buy plane tickets so they could go back home.”
They claimed that they were fired from work as labourers without receiving anything from their respective
employers.
A resident of the Matar Qadeem area said that three people came to his house the other day and asked for money.
“They told us they haven’t had their dinner so I gave them QR10 each,” he said.
Some gangs “operate” in parking lots of supermarkets and approach shoppers for money. They usually “work” in groups of two. Some of them go from one commercial building to another around 5-6pm,
asking for money.
Mohamed, an expatriate worker, feels they are more like conmen than actual beggars.
“I usually give money to beggars, especially to old people but not to those who seem healthy and young,” said Mohamed, who stays in Al Hilal. “Instead of begging, they should work to earn money.”
Ed Alcantara, adviser of Foundation for Family and Life (FFL) of migrant workers, believes that many of these individuals, young and old, are taking advantage of people’s generosity during the fasting month. Alcantara said he saw many such “beggars” in the Souq area.
“I don’t know if they are really beggars or members of a syndicate but what I know is that begging is prohibited in Qatar,” he added.
A resident of Mansoura said a woman in abaya knocks on the doors of the flats in his building “time to time”.
“I don’t know whether it is the same person or not as she has a face veil. She asks for money in Arabic and the only word I understand is ‘miskin’,” said an Indian expatriate. “My guess is that she is a member of a gang engaged in the begging business, exploiting the generous nature of the local
population.”
The Ministry of Interior has opened hotlines for reporting beggars. Patrols are also dispatched to monitor the streets of Doha round the clock during Ramadan.
Brigadier Mosaffar Ali al-Hababi, director of the Department of Criminal Investigation, said they had set up a plan to fight begging during Ramadan covering the
different places.
Hotlines are: 2347453, 2347444 and 66414040.
He said that a number of foreign beggars who had entered Qatar on tourist visas were recently arrested by authorities.
Captain Mansoor al-Khiyarain, head of the section for combating begging, said that the patrols would cover areas like commercial complexes, markets and where mosques are located.
He urged people to give their donations to charity organisations, saying that begging is a negative phenomenon
involving fraud.
Captain al-Khiyarain asked all citizens and residents to co-operate and call the Department of Criminal Investigation on the three hotlines to report begging cases.