Jordan to criminalise begging with up to one year in jail

The lower house of Jordan's parliament has criminalised begging with those convicted likely to spend up to one year in jail, according to reports.

The House of Representatives approved a measure that could see beggars being jailed for between three months and a year, according to Jordan News.

This includes anyone who "displays, with the intent of begging, goods or show games or other acts that are not suitable, by themselves, as a serious source of livelihood, or uses any other fraudulent means to elicit public sympathy with the intent of begging, or is found collecting alms or charitable donations based on a false allegation", Jordan News reported.

Money confiscated from those convicted will be used by the ministry of social development "to spend on bodies and institutions concerned with beggars".

Anyone forcing others into begging will spend at least two years in prison.

Earlier this year, the ministry warned that 5,465 beggars were arrested in the kingdom.

Jordan has been hit by a massive economic slump due to the Covid-19 outbreak and wars in neighbouring countries.

Many Jordanians lost their incomes or saw their wages slashed during the pandemic.