Gangs of beggars prompt Irish law
Toughest penalties set since famine

By The Associated Press
Published: November 30, 2008

DUBLIN, Ireland — Ireland plans to impose tough new penalties on beggars for the first time since the Potato Famine 160 years ago.

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Justice Minister Dermot Ahern says the measure is necessary because of the growth of professional begging gangs who harass pedestrians. Children often are involved in the groups. Ahern says a new measure will make begging punishable by a maximum $900 fine or a month in prison.

Irish police lost their legal authority to arrest beggars after the nation’s second-highest court declared the previous law unconstitutional.

The High Court ruled two years ago that the 1847 Vagrancy Act was too vague and it conflicted with the 1937 Irish Constitution’s clauses on freedom of expression and communication. Britain passed the 1847 act to combat begging as famine swept Ireland.


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Related Topics: Crime, Politics, World Politics, Trials, Natural Disasters, Gang Violence, Irish Politics, European Politics, Censorship


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