Ethiopia: Tolerance, Charity Sustains Beggars, While Govt Overlooks

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Addis Abeba is home to tens of thousands of homeless adults and children, who are the best indicators of the wealth inequality within the city. But neither the public, which is largely tolerant, or the government gives them much attention, Ambessaw Assegued (assegued@anfilo.com).

The beggar is a venerated species in Ethiopia. The public space is open and available to the mendicant and the drifter alike without bias. There are few, if any, scriptures of the law that forbids, for instance, a middle-aged man from prostrating himself astride the pavement in front of Black Lion Bar and Restaurant every morning in Piassa.

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