The Abu Dhabi Police launched on Tuesday a media and community outreach initiative under the slogan “Together… Against Begging.” This campaign is to raise awareness about the growing risks of obliging beggars whose numbers seem to peak particularly before and during the holy month of Ramadan and the Eid Al Fitr holidays.
Major General Mohammed bin Al Awadhi Al Menhali, Director General of Police Operations at Abu Dhabi Police, called upon members of society to spend their money wisely by donating it to support humanitarian efforts carried out under the supervision of authorized charities during the holy month of Ramadan.
Major General Al Menhali pointed out that the “Together… Against Begging” initiative, carried out by the Security Media Department at the General Secretariat of the Office of H.H Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, is a part of the “Your Safety” campaign. These awareness drives are carried out in collaboration between different police and security authorities within the UAE to eradicate this negative phenomenon regarded as a bad behavior.
He announced that crackdown campaigns will be carried out by concerned police authorities to arrest beggars and take subsequent legal actions against them. Major General Al Menhali warned of the risks of interacting and sympathizing with beggars, especially considering that begging, in many cases, can lead to other crimes, such as robbery. He also warned against possible diseases that may be carried by beggars and transmitted to healthy people and family members. “Thanks to the ongoing awareness campaigns and the joint cooperation between the public and media, there was a marked decline in the number of beggars, year-after-year,” he said.
Major General Al Menhali stressed that the concerned police authorities, with their respective commands and departments, are putting forth tremendous efforts through crackdown and awareness campaigns, with a view to fight and eradicate this uncivilized bad behavior, which reflects negatively on society or endanger citizens, as beggars often commit robberies under the garb of begging.
He stressed the importance of the media’s role in highlighting the issue of begging and its negative effects on the community, in order for the police’s efforts to be fruitful. Combined with a social effort, the public must also carry out their duties as the first line of defense to both face and fight this problem.
Major General Al Menhali urged the public to report the actions and behaviors from beggars by calling the Police Operations Room on 999 or via the “Aman” service on 8002626, or via SMS on 2828. Every report will be dealt with immediately and referred to pertinent authorities.
In an effort to help raise public awareness and urge cooperation with police by reporting beggars, the Security Media Department will publish advisories about the risks of begging through the social media channels of the Abu Dhabi Police, on the display screens in a number of shopping malls in Abu Dhabi, and during Friday Sermons.