They become targets for sentiments of “‘I don’t want you to ruin this for me’ or ‘I don’t want you to make me look bad’,” he says.
After a wave of outrage on social media it seems that begpackers are back on the curb in Asian capitals, and the phenomenon isn’t going anywhere.
What is a Begpacker?
The term “begpacker” - a contraction between “beggar” and “backpacker” - was coined to describe someone who relies on others to fund their travels.
It’s a practice that was first documented by travel writer - and self-titled “Backpacker” - Patrick Leigh Fermor. The privileged young Brit documented travelling across 1930s Germany asking for donations in exchange for sketches. “If they are paying reparations, the Bundesvolke might as well pay for my holiday,” he might have thought.
However in the late 1990s the phenomenon kicked into overdrive. The meeting of a ‘backpacker’ culture, exploring the world on a budget and parts of the world with deep Buddhist and charitable traditions led to a heyday of well-heeled travellers busking around Asia. Some would see it as an exploitative relationship.
The cash-strapped travellers would happily visit temples and almshouses in the hope of free board or food - turning up at Sikh Gurdwaras for Langar handouts.
It turns out many were not beyond begging.
“In a Buddhist country the culture of ‘giving’ to the poor or less-fortunate is engrained,” reads one guide.
Begpacking: How to Pay for Your Travels by Begging and Busking was a viral sensation when it was published in 2018, partially because it was alarmingly hard to discern if it is a parody or not.
Prior to the outbreak of Covid-19 the Begpacking phenomenon was growing at an alarming rate. The problem of what to do with travellers relying on donations from strangers to fund their travel habits, because they could not or would not pay their way was a pressing one. In many countries the practice is either illegal or strongly discouraged.
Is begpacking illegal?
One expat, Raphael Rashid, said he had a moral obligation to report tourists asking for cash in Seoul. The journalist says that he takes pride in his moniker the “Begpacker Buster”, sharing pictures of tourists and their signs on social media and with the local police.
Begging or busking on a tourist visitor visa is against the law in Korea. According to Article 20 of Korea’s Immigration Act it could result in the ‘begpacker’ being deported for violating the terms of stay, but Rashid says the tourists are rarely prosecuted.
The writer who has lived in Korea for more than a decade says that it is a form of “white privilege” with fair-skinned visitors, particularly those from the US, being ignored by police. “The way I see it, begpacking — specifically in Asia and Korea — is all about skin colour,” he wrote in a Medium article, Why I Bust Begpackers in Seoul.
“Travel is a luxury available to only a privileged few. If you cannot afford to travel, don’t do it, let alone ask locals to pay for it.”
Last year Malaysian lawyer-turned-TikToker, Reina Lum explained why the issue was so prevalent in some south Asian countries. Many countries require proof of funds or a ticket for onward travel before granting entry to tourists, but this depends largely on the nationality of the visitor.
According to the Malaysian commissions in Wellington and Sydney, you “may require proof to support your stay” at US$50 a day, but this is at the discretion of Immigration officers at your point of entry.
This, says Lum, is the essence of #whiteprivilege that allows the culture of begpacking to thrive.
