Aisha is a Saudi beggar. Her husband is in prison and she provides for five children. She wanders the streets in ragged clothes, rummaging in dustbins for food and anything that can be used, all the while trying to engage passersby in friendly conversation. Aisha has been arrested just once for begging, but was released after pledging to refrain from continuing. When asked why she doesn't seek more gainful employment she replies: “I was offered a job through the Anti-Beggary Department, but it wasn't the right sort of thing for me, and I found I could make more money begging.” Umm Sa'ad also begs to provide for her children and elderly husband. “Some people at traffic lights tell us to go and find a job, but they don't realize that hunger justifies begging. And when we do go to them to ask for help they offer the sort of pay per month that we can get begging in a single week. That's why we won't work and we won't leave ourselves open to abuse and humiliation for sums of money hardly worth mentioning. I used to get 1,500 riyals when I had a job, and that wasn't enough for my children and husband. I tried to make things better by finding another job but wasn't able to, so I ended up begging. And it was the right thing to do as now I can provide for the family, and the money is better than any job I could find.” __
