Beggars in Bulgarian Capital Enjoy Massive, Steady Incomes - Officials

Beggars in Bulgaria's capital Sofia are deluding Bulgarian and foreign passers-by alike as they make several times more than the average Bulgarian and are controlled by organized gangs, according to municipal officials. Photo by BGNES

A rising number of people are finding self-employment as beggars and totters in Bulgaria's capital Sofia because that allows them to make up to 10 times the minimum wage, according to municipal officials.

Totters, i.e. the people that foreign tourists usually photograph sorting garbage from downtown Sofia dumpsters, make more than BGN 50 per day, while beggars are doing much better by making about BGN 3 000 per month, or more than EUR 1 500, while Bulgaria's minimum monthly pay is BGN 240 (to be increased to BGN 270 as of September 1), officials have revealed.

Because of these "self-employment opportunities", more and more people – including people who actually have homes in the provinces – flock to Sofia where they are counted as homeless, Mina Vladimirova, head of the Social Activities Directorate of the Sofia Municipality, told the Focus news agency Thursday.

In her words, the number of people playing music in Sofia's streets is also on the rise, even though it is unclear if that is technically begging.

"These people are making good money and we have now way of coping with them," the municipal official is quoted as saying.

Earlier this week, one of Sofia's deputy mayors, Albena Atanasova, revealed in an interview for the 24 Chasa daily that the municipality put a man undercover in one of the begging gangs in Sofia and discovered that the beggars make some BGN 3 000 monthly.

"We decided to do this experiment because there has been a boom in the number of the beggars, and we were even accused by Roma organizations that we are envious of the little money the beggars make on the street, while these people are reduced to starvation. That is totally untrue. We have offered jobs that pay BGN 300-400 per month to such people, and they turn them down because they make that amount of money much faster," Atanasova disclosed.

She even revealed that before becoming a deputy mayor she too had an offer to join a beggar's gang.

"This is why I claim that begging is an organized activity. I know a lot about this "business" from a man who would sit before the Sheraton Hotel a few years ago, and would make good money. He had 5 children and they were all doing fine. He moved to another city because he was "demoted" and moved to a less high-profile location but in the meantime he managed to buy a house," Atanasova said.

In her words, the beggar gangs have clear cut hierarchy that determines the location of the respective beggar. The best spots are in front of the five-star hotels where the "most skilled" beggars – i.e. ones that can weep and demonstrate bad health – are on display.

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