The Good Samaritan Dilemma: Anti-mendicancy Law Of 1978 Social Essay (Essay Sample)

THE GOOD SAMARITAN DILEMMA: ANTI-MENDICANCY LAW OF 1978
Introduction
The idea of a Good Samaritan is a parable based from the Gospel of Luke 10:25-37 in the Roman Catholic Bible. It is a story of a traveller who was beaten, stripped of clothing and left half dead alongside the road. A priest and a Levite came across but they avoided the man. When a Samaritan passed by, he immediately assisted and help the beaten man. "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he travelled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have." (Luke 10:25-37). This story gained popularity in the whole world to the point that the term “Good Samaritan” is used to describe a person who gives help to the people in need. However, Philippine laws constraints some actions of being a Good Samaritan through the Anti-Mendicancy Law. “Help the poor, don’t give alms.” The Department of Social Welfare and Development issued a statement last 2017 reminding the public to refuse giving alms to beggars to reduce mendicancy in the streets. Presidential Decree No. 1563 or Anti-Mendicancy Law of 1978 states that giving alms to the needy people in the streets who ask for alms is not the right way to help them, instead, it would only lead to the ballooning of the number of beggars along major streets in the country. In simple terms, the Anti-Mendicancy Law aims to eradicate widespread street begging in the country.