Everyone loves traveling and want to explore the world.
And that’s why people actually save their own money for trips. People across the world are growing tired of the sight of seeing relatively affluent Westerns begging on the streets. These begpackers are hoping that locals will help and pay for their journey to the next destination.
In an official statement, Setyo Budiwardoyo from the island’s immigration department has said that “they are now reporting these begpackers to their embassies, according to Detik, as caring for them should be the embassy’s responsibility.”
He said: “We have seen many cases of problematic tourists, lately they are either Australian, British or Russian.
“We tend to report these cases to the relevant embassies so that they can oversee their citizens who are on holiday.”
The immigration official said that when they had looked after these travelers before, the cost of living must now be borne by their respective embassies.
Most visitors are genuine tourists, while some have been accused of scrounging off their host nations.
Locals have shared photos of the travelers, who can be seen begging for money or selling wares on the street to fund their holidays, hence the moniker of begpackers.
Some have even been accused of running scams, by pretending to have lost their debit card and needing money to get home.
If you are sharing a skill, like teaching a language for example, or selling some hand-made products, is not wrong. Some people take it as a pride to travel on a shoestring and they enjoy the challenge of survival in challenging places.
“While it is not OK to beg while traveling, there really is nothing wrong (or new) with busking or selling hand-made jewelry on the side of the road,” Will Hatton, founder of the Broke Backpacker blog, told the Independent.
“This isn’t a conventional career choice but it is how some people opt to travel the world and if you are sharing a skill or selling a product I really don’t see the harm. I think a lot of people are threatened by backpackers living so hand to mouth as it’s a lifestyle which many people just can’t get to grips with – ultimately though, for many, it’s far more fun to travel the world on $10 a day than to be chained to a desk.”
“The news about foreign tourists turning to beg and busking on the streets of Kuala Lumpur cannot be good news. They claim they need money to continue their world travel.” Malaysian businessman and traveler TV Smith said in an Instagram post.
“It cannot be a good thing as it might affect all of us travelers, especially travelers on a budget.”
“I am very angry reading this as I do not travel without sufficient funds or contingency. Most of us don’t. We stick to a plan and go home when the money runs low.”
“How will it impact you? Soon, many countries may start imposing conditions to enter such as a minimum amount of money in traveler’s checks or you must carry a credit card with a healthy credit limit.point 177 | Or provide proof of hotel reservations and return tickets.point 227 |
I have seen it imposed at entry points in the UK in the 1980’s.point 56 | I don’t know if traveler’s checks still exist and it was a hassle buying them before a trip.point 143 | It will affect genuine travelers everywhere.point 182 | ”point 189 | 1
“I think it is best we do not give money to these panhandlers as it will only encourage more shoestring backpackers to do the same. Some of the beggars boast on their Facebook, showing off their lavish lifestyle funded by begging from locals. Many just pretend to be poor and may have a platinum card in a pouch somewhere.”