2007 07: Child beggars targeting Arab tourists

The Star Online. News. Nation. Tuesday July 24, 2007

HARIAN Metro reported that child beggars in Kuala Lumpur were picking up the Arabic language in a move to get more sympathy from tourists from the Middle East.

Recent checks around the city by the daily found child beggars preferring foreigners as prey, as their “donations” were often bigger compared to locals, who usually looked the other way.

These children would brave the scorching heat of the city in the afternoons, waiting outside restaurants popular with Arab tourists.

The child beggars are reported to be between six and eight years old and work together in groups, wearing worn-out clothes and going barefooted.