[These Days] Why Beggars Do Not Disappear in Paris City Center

Most of the beggars in Paris live with dogs.
[Photo by YouTube screenshot]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jong-hwa] When traveling abroad, one often discovers that major cities in countries known to be wealthier than Korea surprisingly have many "beggars." While some countries consider beggars or homeless people as a "shadow" of the nation and try to hide them, others do not make much effort to conceal them and let them be visible as they are.

Representative countries of the latter include the United States and France. In the U.S., cities along the warm Pacific coast such as Los Angeles (LA) and San Francisco have beggars visible on many streets. Among cities with a large number of beggars, Paris in France cannot be overlooked. Parisian beggars are more famous than those in any other city worldwide.

Authorities crack down on beggars in Paris due to complaints from tourists, but they do not disappear. Locally called "mandiant," these beggars are commonly seen in major parks, station plazas, tourist hotel districts like Boulevard Haussmann Street, the luxury shopping area of Champs-?lys?es, and Montaigne Street.

Why are there so many beggars in Paris? France is the world's 7th largest economy. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), as of March last year, the world's largest economy is the United States. The U.S. has a nominal GDP of $19.0399 trillion, far ahead of China’s $12.1 trillion.

Third is Japan ($4.87 trillion), fourth Germany ($3.68 trillion), fifth the United Kingdom ($2.62 trillion), sixth India ($2.616 trillion), seventh France ($2.58 trillion), eighth Brazil ($2.005 trillion), ninth Italy ($1.93 trillion), tenth Canada ($1.5 trillion), and eleventh South Korea ($1.053 trillion).

When assessing how well citizens live, per capita income (PPP basis) is considered. Even by per capita income ranking, France remains wealthier than Korea. According to IMF data for 2019, the country with the highest per capita income is Luxembourg ($112,850). France ranks 19th with $42,470, and Korea ranks 29th with $31,940.

The reason Paris has more beggars or homeless people compared to other wealthy countries’ cities is that France is relatively lenient regarding immigration policies and illegal residents compared to other European countries. The French authorities claim this is due to "respect for human rights and freedom," but the underlying reason is a shortage of labor willing to do tough jobs.

Without illegal foreign workers in Paris, the city would be covered in garbage, and the Seine River would turn into sewage water due to labor shortages. Therefore, France has the highest number of asylum seekers and illegal residents in Europe.

Parisian beggars can work if they want. If they request at government-run employment centers, they are immediately offered jobs. If they do not like the job, they can request again up to three times. Still, beggars do not disappear. Why is that?

Observing Parisian beggars, most of them have dogs. Not large dogs, but small to medium-sized puppies. The plump puppies, the dirty fedora hats, and large McDonald’s paper cups used to collect coins from tourists are their survival tools. Beggars raising dogs? This is an incomprehensible sight from a Korean perspective.

One reason they keep dogs is to avoid crackdowns. France punishes pet abandonment. If police crack down on beggars, they must take responsibility for the abandoned dogs. It is difficult to take care of the dogs, and if news spreads on social media that dogs were abused during crackdowns, it becomes problematic. Naturally, crackdowns become more lenient.

Another reason for keeping dogs close is to use them as heaters when cold. On chilly mornings and in winter, the dogs serve as bio-heaters to cuddle with. The most important reason is that if unemployed people (including beggars) keep dogs, local governments provide subsidies not only for the unemployed but also for the dogs. There is no reason to refuse subsidies from the Paris city government just by having a dog nearby.

It is also to evoke sympathy. Compassionate tourists and Paris citizens worry that beggars might starve their dogs. Even if the beggars themselves do not seem very pitiful, the dogs do, so people throw money into the fedora or paper cups to buy dog food.

Parisian beggars employ sophisticated sales tactics. As long as tourists and Paris citizens keep throwing money into the fedora, the likelihood of Parisian beggars quitting their "business" is almost zero.

Even the beggars in Paris have their own ways of operating. Is the problem their method of exploiting the gaps in the system for the unemployed, the nature of humans being lazy, or the people who give alms to beggars?
[Photo by YouTube screenshot]

Is the reason beggars do not disappear from Paris streets due to the excessive welfare policies of the French government that even worry about dog food, or is it because of the meddlesome concern of Paris citizens who worry more about dogs than people? Or is it simply due to the lazy nature of humans?

On the 9th, the Basic Pension Act was amended, increasing the number of people receiving up to 300,000 won per month from the current bottom 20% income bracket to the bottom 40% in 2020. Next year, the basic pension will be extended to the bottom 70% income bracket. Korea’s welfare is gradually expanding, and the trend is moving toward "basic income."

Korea’s welfare system is clearly still insufficient compared to wealthy Western countries like France. To realize proper welfare policies, institutional strengths and weaknesses must be carefully examined before implementation to leave no gaps. Parisian beggars survive by exploiting loopholes in the French welfare system.

Is Korea’s system without problems? Labor circles lament that the "Kim Yong-gyun Act" (Industrial Safety and Health Act), fully revised for the first time in 28 years and implemented this year, "does not actually include Kim Yong-gyun." The act was triggered by the death of subcontractor worker Kim Yong-gyun at Taean Thermal Power Plant about a year ago. However, thermal power plants were excluded from the act’s scope.

This is the ironic reality of Korean politics. So it is worrisome. Whether a system is made or not, there is worry. In that sense, perhaps the problem is not the system but the people. When creating systems for people’s safety and welfare, should dogs be considered? Dogs can be thought of when making systems for dogs.