Beggars, buskers flood Yogya

YOGYAKARTA: Motorists in this town are complaining about the growing number of beggars and buskers on main intersections, Antara said over the weekend.

They claim that beggars and buskers have taken the place of hawkers who used to trade their wares at busy intersections.

Their chief complaint is that some of the buskers are intimidating rather than entertaining.

"I'd rather give them loose change rather than let them scratch my car with some sharp object," one motorists said.

Antara said most of the beggars and buskers came from outside Yogyakarta and had escaped poverty in their villages. They said prolonged drought had led to major harvest failures. (emb)