Ryanair was criticized for asking South African passengers to complete an Afrikaans test before they board flights.
After presenting passengers with the West Germanic language test, the low-cost airline was accused of discrimination. This language was used only by 12% of the population under apartheid.
The news of the test was made public last month when a passenger on a flight from Portugal to London posted on Twitter that he had been asked to take “a two-page Afrikaans test” before being allowed to board his flight.
South Africans were furious at the move, taking to social media to complain about the airline. Many pointed out that South Africa has 11 languages and many South Africans don’t speak Afrikaans.
“Insane, discriminatory”
Alex Macheras, an independent aviation analyst, described the decision to be “categorically crazy and discriminatory.”
Ryanair issued a statement stating that the test was made up questions related to South African general Knowledge and was created in response to the “high prevalence” of South African counterfeit passports.
The statement states that “Due to the high number of fraudulent South African passports,” passengers travelling to the UK are required to complete a simple Afrikaans questionnaire.
“If they are not able to complete the questionnaire, they will be refused transportation and issued with a full reimbursement.”
The UK High Commission in South Africa also responded to the survey, noting that it is “not a requirement of the UK Government.”
Afrikaans, after Zulu or Xhosa, is the third most commonly spoken language in South Africa.
Ryanair does no operate direct flights from or to South Africa. It is not clear if the test applies to all Ryanair flights, or only to those flying to the UK.
CNN reached out to Ryanair for comment.
Adrian DennisAFP via Getty Images. Top image credit
