A three year-old child beggar seen smoking cigarettes on the streets of Jiangsu province has outraged Chinese netizens.

The issue has come to national attention in China after a netizen uploaded videos where the child, equipped with his own pack of cigarettes and lighter, is seen lighting up a cigarette and smoking it.

The unidentified child spends his days blocking traffic and begging for money from passing motorists. Estimated to be around three or four year-old, the child sleeps outside at a bus station with his father, whom he accompanies.

The child’s father is said to be addicted to drinking and smoking. A local homeless outreach program said they are familiar with this individual, and say his homelessness is a long, recurring problem. The program also said the father refuses any aid they offer him, but remains unwilling to work.

The boy’s mother is said to have left the family years ago.

Chinese netizens are upset at the father for allowing his son to get into this situation.

“If you are fit and able, one should go work to support one’s family,” wrote one person, while another wrote, “This kind of father should be deprived his right to custody of their child.” Another person said, “I’m heartbroken. It seems like every kind of scum exists in this world.”

Some netizens have more extreme opinions. One person wrote, “I hope that once this kid grows up, he’ll beat his dad everyday to the point that his teeth are littering the floor.” Another person said, “I have no words for the father, but the child is done for.”

Others have suggested that the situation requires society to get involved. One person wrote, “It’s clear that the government isn’t doing its job,” while another wrote, “Child protection services should intervene.”

China has the most smokers in the world, claiming over half of all men in the country. However, the huge numbers of Chinese smokers has led to an epidemic of smoking-related health problems, claiming one million fatalities a year. A recent study has suggested that a third of all Chinese men will die from smoking unless they refrain from picking up the habit.

Anti-smoking efforts in China have raised cigarette taxes and have implemented city-wide public smoking bans in Beijing.

You can watch video of the child smoking here and here.

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The backpacker said he had just arrived from Kunming by train, and is planning to go to Hong Kong. He claims to only have RMB 40 on his person, and is relying on the generosity of others to cover his train tickets and accommodation.

The backpacker follows in the steps of 25 year-old Victor from Poland who was seen begging at Guangzhou East Railway Station last November. Victor said he ran out of money while backpacking, and relied on the kindness of strangers, while police and workers at the station claim Victor is a professional panhandler who can make as much as RMB 1000 a day.

Much like the Russian backpacker, Victor said he intended to use the money earned from begging to travel to Kunming, and then continue onwards to Laos, Thailand and Cambodia.

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The 25 year-old Polish man, identified as “Victor”, said he arrived in Guangzhou last week and quickly spent the $500 he had saved to backpack throughout Asia. With no money, Victor has had to rely on the kindness of strangers who have been willing to help him buy the 200 yuan ticket to Kunming, where he plans to continue onward to Laos, Thailand and Cambodia.

Knowing no Chinese, Victor sits at the No. 1 entrance to the train station with a sign that reads “Ticket to Kunming” (seen below).

However, locals say Victor is lying, and that he’s always at the train station panhandling. A janitor named Zhang claims he even knows how much Victor makes in a typical day:

Don’t believe him, he’s been here for about ten days now. Foreigners are generous and give him one or two hundred yuan while Chinese usually just give him ten or twenty yuan. In a day, he can usually make about a thousand yuan.

An unidentified police officer confirmed Zhang’s account saying, “He’s been here for about a month now. I saw him before I went on my vacation on October 10.”

When a reporter with the Southern Capital Report confronted Victor, he immediately came clean and explained, “I’ve been here for ten days, but if I were to explain that I’ve been here for so long, people will get mad.” When asked how much money he has made from begging, Victor would only say that Guangzhou residents are “really friendly”.

If it seems like Victor has worn out his welcome in Guangzhou, no one appears to be showing him the door. Guangzhou police have admitted there’s little they can do:

He hasn’t caused a public disturbance, so we can’t force him to leave. Sometimes we have a communication problem (with him).

The fluently-English speaking Polish expat said that he has decided to leave for Kunming very soon, but then cryptically ended the interview by asking:

Out of a hundred percent, how much of my story do you believe?

Related:

• Giant LED screen in Shenzhen broadcasts footage of alleged fake beggars
• Beggars in Shenzhen living secret lives of luxury? Some say it’s true

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May 17 marked the third month and 28th day of the lunar calendar, the birthday of Ksitigarbha, also known as the bodhisattva of the dwellers of hell. On this day when Yama, the king of hell, throws open his gates and set ghosts free upon the world, it is customary to make offerings to one’s ancestors and to departed spirits.

Also on this day, according to the local tradition of the Bai people in Xiangyun County of Dali Prefecture, it is customary to give to the poor. That’s why this time every year, beggars gather in front of Dongyue Temple as thousands nearby perform traditional rituals, set off fireworks, burn paper money and prepare offerings such as cooked chicken (below) to the dead.

These photographs show what has come to be known on the Chinese internet as a “beggar festival”.

Related:

• Beggars in Shenzhen living secret lives of luxury? Some say it’s true
• Beggar with Fake Disability Makes Enough Money to Buy Two Homes in Beijing
• Local aid worker claims Baiyun Airport panhandlers are making big bucks
• Dongguan gangs purposely disfigure victims, send them out as beggars
• Report: Beggars in Guangzhou specifically targeting foreigners

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While there are legitimate beggars in China, not all of them are. According to a recent report, professional beggars can earn upwards of RMB 10,000 a month, and in one case, enough to purchase two homes in Beijing.

A Beijing television show called Special Focus worked in tandem with the Beijing Transportation Police to expose one such beggar who isn’t as he appears to be. The show followed the beggar, seen walking into Entrance D of the Liujiayao Metro Station on Line 5 on his own two feet.

His usual habit is to change into dirty, old clothes in the bathroom, then act the part of a crippled man by scooting around on his posterior.

As the filming took place on February 16 in the lull before the Spring Festival, there weren’t many people around, leading the beggar to change clothes on the subway platform. Then, he was filmed begging for money on the subway until he was finally arrested at 10 later that morning.

The beggar was identified as 46 year-old Li, who has carved out his own territory on Line 5 from Liujiayao to Huixin West Station. Li admitted that he can make RMB 300 begging in a round trip, of which he usually makes about three a day, allowing him to purchase two homes in the Beijing area.

Li’s success is in part to having established his own “begging territory” that keeps other beggars away. “Right now, Line 5 belongs to me as well as those (beggars) holding babies,” said Li, “(But) I’ll break the legs of anyone else who comes. That’s why no other beggars want to come here.”

Li was eventually charged by police with causing public disorder, but it’s a small price to pay after having collected enough money to buy property in one of China’s most expensive cities.

The post Beggar with Fake Disability Makes Enough Money to Buy Two Homes in Beijing appeared first on The Nanfang.

QQ sent reporter Cui Guanghua out to take these incredibly thorough set of pictures of a group of professional beggars in Zhengzhou, Henan. The photos follow the group from morning to dusk and shows what a day of work for a professional beggar is like:

During the morning rush hour at the northwest corner of Huayuan Road and Weiwu Road, an old man lies on the ground covered with a sheet while a middle-aged woman repeatedly kowtows beside him (above).

Half an hour later, a middle-aged man comes over to join the group. He looks
into the bucket, counts the money, puts it into his pocket. All three, including the man lying prone on the ground, get engaged in a light-hearted conversation.

According to the QQ report, the middle-aged man that just joined the group is named Zhang; the man on the ground is Zhang’s cousin, while the middle-aged woman is Ye,
Zhang’s other cousin.

The group is from from Qiaoxi, Anhui Province, and has been in Henan for three years. Their assimilation into the local culture is so complete that Zhang and He can both fluently speak the Henan dialect.

At 11:30am, the trio pack up their belongings and take the bus to go to another location.

Twenty minutes later, the group arrives at Renmin Road, near “Danny’s” shopping center. It is now noon, and there are lots of pedestrians in the area. People drop money into the group’s cup.

In the afternoon the members of the group enjoy popsicles while counting their earnings.

Beer is used to fill up a water bottle that acts as a substitute for “medicine”.

The group produces a sizable amount of garbage from consuming food and other products that a street cleaner sweeps away for them.

At around 2:30pm there is less pedestrian traffic, so the group meets up with another beggar who happens to have the the same gear as they do.

Zhang is seen counting the money again.

The group then heads for a late lunch of fried chicken and beer.

After eating, the group begs during the evening rush hour.

Half an hour later, the group is forced to relocate next to a parking garage because of mall staff.

After half an hour, they switch positions.

A day of work finally concludes at 10pm when the group has dinner at a restaurant.

Dinner is paid for in small bills.

At one point Ye took offense to being photographed by the reporter.

To top it off, at some point Zhang was seen browsing at a Cartier jewelry store.

Photos: QQ, Shenzhen Evening Report

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A Weibo user from Guanlin, Luoyang posted pictures of the man, and wrote text to accompany them: (translated)

Wait until my hair grows to my waist, it will be better to marry you then.

Now, this is what you call an ‘elegant demeanor’.

Guanlin has a model for international style. 

Give me a ‘like’. 

However, while he’s lauded as an old hipster, he’s still a beggar, according to the original poster:

An old beggar, though his heart remains young. I am stupid, I am elegantly unrestrained.

And so, the compliments come in, perhaps even too easily now that everyone knows his social standing. Here are some comments from netizens from the original post:

日照-来奇：
He’s leading the way of the international trend!

爱乐游：
Feh, he’s so handsome.

壹玖柒柒：
Don’t know which sect he belongs to. [confused.emo]

海豚座星云：
After going through the circuit of all the big stars, international fashion has lost all of its moxy in the blink of an eye.

ponyo-不爱吃柠檬的啵妞：
Wow, so cool! He’s a model for international style! [laughing.emo]

沛县同城会：
He’s got the magic touch [thumbsup.emo]

郑州洛菲拾花摄：
He’s super cool [laughstifle.emo]

雨隹云龙：
His shoes are very current; he reminds me of Brother Sharp.
[Brother Sharp was a meme from a couple of years back; he was also a homeless man just walking on the street when someone took a flattering picture of him]

奢宠会所：
Whatever people are isn’t important; what’s important is the attitude with which we treat them.

胖旋BBER：
Other people laugh at me for being crazy, I laugh at other people for not wearing what they acknowledge (to be fashionable).

Photos: News China

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According to a statement posted on the Shunde Police Department’s official Weibo account, a man surnamed Li stopped a truck in front of the Jun’an No. 2 Bridge to unload a group of five disabled beggars around 8pm on Saturday, an act described by police as “an occupation of the main road and greatly disrupting traffic order”. As the beggars were getting out of the truck, traffic enforcement personnel had reportedly requested Li to move.

Li refused to move and pushed the beggars into the middle of the road, some of whom were seen lying under cars, which quickly attracted the attention of hundreds of onlookers. The Wen Wei Po report said the police eventually beat beggars and damaged their singing props, a point not noted in the police statement.

No casualties were mentioned in either report.

Three people, including Li, were arrested for burning the motorbikes, vandalizing the truck and instigating the crowd.

It’s unclear if Li is involved in organised beggar gangs in Guangdong. Some gangs in the province purposely disfigure victims to send out as beggars.

Images posted by weibo user @史丹利澳门 can be seen below:

*Jun’an, Foshan is best known as kung-fu star Bruce Lee’s ancestral hometown

Home page and content page photos from weibo user @史丹利澳门

The post Foshan Protesters Burn Vehicles in Riot Against Police Brutality appeared first on The Nanfang.

However, reporters from Yangcheng Evening News discovered that plenty of beggars were opting to stay under footbridges and in underpasses. Kecun Lijiao, East Haotong and Huangshi Lijiao all had at least ten homeless people each spending the night there.

A homeless man and his girlfriend erect a wooden board to protect themselves from the wind, image courtesy of Nandu Daily

The main reason cited for opting to stay out there instead of enjoy the beds, warm clothes, and food provided by homeless shelters? Freedom. One of the city’s over 400 homeless shelters has filled less than half of its 500 beds, according to the reports.

Volunteers have been sent around the city to bring food and blankets, but some homeless people have even refused those. Shi Xiaojia, a member of a team of volunteers that helps the homeless, has discovered that Guangzhou’s homeless shelters have been likened to prisons and do not attack the roots of social problems by, for example, providing health care for the elderly and education for the young.

Shi Xiaojia has called for volunteers to show more respect for the homeless instead of just giving handouts.

The post Guangzhou’s homeless spurn shelters, claim too restrictive appeared first on The Nanfang.

Wu’s remarks come after members of the Dongmen Street Law Enforcement Team claimed in the aftermath of a six-month investigation that many of the beggars were not homeless and even lived lives of luxury thanks to gullible members of the public.

Despite many appearing disabled and having elaborate back stories of poverty and illness, members of the team claim that a significant portion of the beggars are not genuine. Moreover, they are often a nuisance to local merchants and shoppers due to their forcefulness. Local party committee secretary Luo Zhiwei said something had to be done.

One beggar who caught the law enforcement team’s attention with his forcefulness was a middle-aged man who was often seen begging with a disabled child near Sun Plaza. One day, team members followed him and saw him put the child in the back of a white van with other disabled children and speed away. The man has also been seen begging in the upmarket Futian Fumin Roadside.

Wu Limin urged relevant government departments to conduct a formal investigation into the beggars in the area, adding that considering the volume of traffic, some may have higher earnings than even himself.

Yi Songguo, professor of Sociology at Shenzhen University, added that, regardless of whether the beggars were genuine, they should not be allowed to become a public menace. Wu fears that they may be sullying the city’s image.

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