Shanghai police denied over the weekend that they are deliberately trying to humiliate beggars by posting some of their names and the number of times they have been detained for begging on subway trains.

Lu Feng, spokesperson of the Shanghai Public Security Bureau, said on his Sina Weibo that the police didn't expressly identify the beggars although the list includes the surnames, ages and hometowns of three beggars who have been most frequently detained.

The list, which was published on the metro police office's Weibo, is headed by a 22-year-old disabled man who cannot walk from Liaoning Province. He has been detained 309 times since 2008. An 88-year-old woman from Anhui Province was caught begging 303 times.

An editorial in the Xi'an-based Chinese Business View sympathized with the beggars and accused Shanghai police of poor handling of underprivileged people and humiliating them by publishing their names.

The editorial called on the police to simply "ignore" beggars instead of detaining them. It suggested that "civilized urbanites" should put up with "those who are forced to live off begging."

Police said this year they have detained subway beggars 9,000 times up to August 10, adding that 411 beggars have been caught over 10 times each.

Earlier last month Shanghai police also asked commuters to report beggars' whereabouts through Weixin, a popular instant messaging application.

The police argue that begging on the metro can be lucrative. "The beggars listed are far from poor. They can earn several hundred yuan a day. They even order KFC to be delivered while being held, snubbing their noses at the food that we provide them. Begging is their career," Lu wrote.

Fang Yong, chief of metro police of Line 1, told the Global Times that the police are allowed to fine beggars a maximum of 200 yuan ($31.46), but it does little to deter them as they still come out ahead even after paying the fine.

The Global Times followed a pair of beggars earlier this year as they walked through subway cars asking for money to pay for cancer treatments. In fewer than 30 minutes, about 50 passengers gave them money. Some gave them bank notes, most handed them coins.

A media officer surnamed Zhou with the Shanghai metro police department told the Global Times that some beggars try to convince commuters to give them money in various annoying ways.

"We once spotted a beggar breastfeeding her baby in front of male riders and refused to move until they reached for their wallet," Zhou said.

He Haidong, a lawyer with the Shanghai Jin Zhi Law Firm, told the Global Times that begging is not a crime. "Though begging on the subway is not against the law, it's against regulations and the authorities have the right to require beggars to leave."

"Beggars are usually detained until 10 pm, while disabled people are released immediately as the Chinese law states that they cannot be punished," Fang Yong added.