The development of Moroccans’ awareness of the importance of stopping providing assistance to beggars is still “insufficient” to curb the expansion of begging in public spaces, according to those who follow the phenomenon. The professionals of this practice, without a compelling or compelling reason, refuse to invent new ways to attract the sympathy and compassion of citizens, so that they can extract a share of their money, not necessarily cash; As it may be a travel ticket, a loaf of bread, or vegetables and fruits…, which are then resold, it is clear begging.
A group of road stations, and sometimes even railway stations, have begun to complain of the daily influx of beggars to their sides in order to repeat almost uniform stories in the ears of those who attend these stations. Perhaps the most prominent of these is what the beggar claims about being a passer-by who needs the price of a return ticket, or even getting it for him if the citizen/traveler is not convinced, so that this beggar lies in wait for another citizen to convince him to buy the ticket he was given in charity, after he has satiated himself with justifications that made him no longer need it.
Some bakeries, butcher shops, vegetables and fruits, as well as snack shops, are also almost devoid of a practice similar to begging through fraud, which basically consists of beggars begging some citizens who go to these shops to give them some of the food or consumer products they offer, and then reselling them as well, and sometimes To the owner of the store from which it was sold for the first time.
Researchers in social psychology, who confirmed that they have observed the development of resorting to these forms in Moroccan cities by beggars, believe that these practices “reflect their desire to keep pace with any increase in citizens’ awareness regarding some fraudulent method used in begging,” while pointing out that “the development Not only did the fabricated stories appear, but also the beggar’s clothing, which was no longer as shabby as it used to be, which ultimately made the citizen convinced that he was forced to beg temporarily due to some circumstance, and that he He does not make begging his daily profession.”
“Begging keeps pace with awareness”
Commenting on the issue, Mohsen Benzakour, a research professor in social psychology at Shuaib Doukkali University in El Jadida, recorded that “the most dangerous type of begging is that based on fraud, and its forms have multiplied and developed greatly in recent years,” adding that “the continuation of this phenomenon is due to two reasons.” The first is that sympathy with beggars among Moroccans and giving them alms is still common, either due to religious motives or a desire to ward off feelings of guilt.
The second reason, Benzakor adds to Hespress, is that “the criminal beggar – given that fraud and swindling are criminal acts by law – does not hesitate to create stories and scenarios that can arouse people’s emotions and arouse their sense of guilt, to bring down everyone who begs them, including those who believe they are clever.” He controls his awareness and mind when dealing with beggars.”
The professor, who is a researcher in social psychology, confirmed that “all the tricks that cannot occur to the Moroccan citizen are being used by fraudulent beggars, from claiming to be lost or not having the price of a travel ticket and then reselling it to another citizen, or begging for bread, food, or other things and reselling them.” As well as inventing other fraudulent stories,” he added, “as the awareness and intelligence of the Moroccan citizen develops regarding the ways beggars deceive, the more they invent others. “And here we are faced with an artifice in crime.”
He continued, explaining: “When a beggar discovers the cost-effectiveness of a fraudulent scam method, and its effectiveness and efficiency in stealing citizens’ money, he is keen to share it with the professionals of this act until it is revealed to the citizens, so these beggars then resort to creating others.”
He said that beggars, through fraudulent methods, “target their victims in places where the possibility of them feeling guilty and embarrassed, and thus giving charity, may be high, such as bakeries, food stores, or slaughterhouses.”
The professor, a researcher in social psychology, pointed out that “the method of begging with a disability by claiming amputation of a leg or hand is old, but it has also returned strongly to public squares and spaces.”
He highlighted that the solution to this problem begins with “the Moroccan citizen’s certainty that giving bread, a travel ticket, or dirhams to a beggar is not charity and will not restore his self-confidence and religiosity,” explaining that “this phenomenon that we are dealing with calls for the vigilance of citizens on the religious side as well; Charity has conditions, the first of which is that it must be given secretly in the first place, so offering it in public to a beggar is not acceptable to God Almighty.”
“Multi-faceted development”
Kholoud Sibai, professor of social psychology at Hassan II University in Casablanca, stated that “the development of forms of fraud and fraud through begging cannot be separated from the major developments that have occurred in Moroccan society and its members’ view of begging in the first place.” Decades ago, begging was viewed as a shame and humiliation of the soul, but now many people consider it a type of legitimate demand, such that they strive to find some kind of justification to make it acceptable, such as the lack of job opportunities and widespread unemployment.”
Al-Sibai explained, telling Hespress, “The appearance of the beggar has changed and developed a lot on this basis; “We no longer see him wearing shabby clothes as we used to before, but rather elegant and coordinated.” She added that “he does this in order to create great sympathy among the citizens for him, and to give a kind of credibility to his claim that circumstances beyond his control, including unemployment, led him to beg.” Emphasizing that “this method makes the beggar’s lies fool the citizens, which motivates him to continue begging, until it becomes natural to him and makes it difficult for him to quit.”
The spokeswoman supported “the proposition that what makes beggars resort to the new methods mentioned above is their reliance on the fact that the Moroccan citizen will eventually believe that they do not pursue begging as a profession in order to accumulate money, for example, but rather they were forced to do so only in a certain circumstance,” stressing that “beggars They never stop thinking and creating ways to steal people’s sympathy, not at the level of traditional begging, but also at the level of digital begging.”
She emphasized that some citizens “do not discover the lie of the beggar/scammer for whom they once bought a travel ticket, for example, until they encounter him again at the same station practicing his fraudulent and fraudulent behavior,” warning that “such practices will lead to a lack of trust among citizens, which will lead to… Depriving a group of those who deserve charity from it.”
