Sunday 24 / August / 2025
Muscat: Anyone using children to help with begging shall be punished with imprisonment of three to 36 months and a fine of between OMR50 and OMR100, the Royal Oman Police (ROP) has warned.
As the holy month of Ramadan sees an increase in begging, the ROP has also urged the public to help combat this menace.
Lt. Col. Ali Al Arimi, Director of Combating Narcotics at the ROP, said that the police, along with the Ministry of Social Development, the Ministry of Manpower and the Public Prosecution, has conducted intensive campaigns during Ramadan, in which special teams have been formed throughout the country to monitor beggars.
“Beggars take advantage of fasting Muslims by exploiting their faith. But people must be careful of them. The public should go to official places to make donations, such as charities associations,” Al Arimi said.
Regarding the reasons for begging, the director of Combating Narcotics explained that some people are lazy and prefer not to work, making easy money without exerting any efforts.
Also, the lack of job opportunities, especially for those who violate the Labour and Residence laws, are among the reasons behind begging.
He pointed out that the ROP handles citizens who are caught begging, in coordination with those authorities who take measures against it.
“They will get financial help if they meet the social security entitlement, or they will be provided with jobs,” Al Arimi added.
“If, however, they are found to be involved in fraud, legal action will be taken against them,” he said.
Regarding the methods used by beggars to extract money, Al Arimi explained that there are a number of ways in which beggars take advantage of the public, such as by asking for donations for a charity, or for building mosques or schools, and even by claiming to be ill or disabled.
“They are accompanied by children with disabilities to some places, to win over the feelings of mercy and kindness of people. Other beggars hire children and use them as a means of begging, with money being paid to the family of the child,” he continued.
In the first four months of 2018, 499 beggars were arrested in Oman, and 439 of these were expats, the Ministry of Social Development announced.
The report by the ministry noted, “Out of the 60 Omani beggars who were arrested, 46 were men and 14 were women. Out of the 439 expat beggars, 285 were men while 154 were women.”
According to the ministry, Muscat Governorate led the list with 332 beggars, followed by Dhofar with 77 beggars, North and South Batinah recorded 58 beggars, while Al Buraimi and Al Dhahirah governorates had 18 and 14 beggars, respectively.
“A total of 33 beggars were under the age of 12, while 35 beggars were between the ages of 12 and 17, and 413 beggars were older than 18 years of age,” the ministry added.
“During Ramadan, the number of beggars increases by 70 per cent, as the holy month is considered to be a season for begging, when beggars exploit the month of Ramadan because many Muslims increase their charitable contributions and, thus, unintentionally contribute to the increasing amount of begging,” said Hamood Al Mandhari, manager at the department of social development in Seeb.
Anyone found begging in public or private places shall be punished by imprisonment for a period of no less than two months and no more than two years.
