FRANCE’S NATIONAL rail operator has expressed regret over an official poster which appeared on trains in the southwest alerting passengers to “concerns about Romanians” stealing baggage.
The “safety information” sign appeared on trains running on regional Midi-Pyrénées lines in the southwest of the country following a spate of thefts.
It advised passengers: “In recent weeks, concerns have arisen about Romanians. Indeed, a number of luggage thefts have been noted. We advise you to be twice as vigilant. In addition, all the activities of Romanians should be brought to the attention of [rail security personnel].”
The poster appeared in January but went largely unnoticed until Mouloud Akkouche, a local writer who was travelling from Foix to Toulouse, made a complaint.
After initially thinking the alert was the work of a prankster, Mr Akkouche made a complaint and took the story to the media. Since the notice was posted on the website rue89.fr, rail operator SNCF has been defending itself against accusations of xenophobia.
"It was a disgrace," said Mr Akkouche. "This poster was bound to cause offence to people from Romania. It's a xenophobic directive," a spokesman for the Sud-Rail trade union told the regional newspaper La Dépêche du Midi.
“Begging and stealing happen on the regional trains. But either we point out all malicious acts or none – we shouldn’t point to one category of people.”
Malik Salemkour, vice-president of the Human Rights League, described the poster as “an incitement to racial hatred”.
With the controversy unleashing a wave of anti-Romanian views online, the SNCF issued a statement saying the poster was the result of a “regrettable individual initiative” which the company “neither endorses nor supports”.
“Its aim was to increase the vigilance of inspectors after a recent surge in thefts committed on certain trains,” the statement noted, adding that the duty of staff was to protect goods and passengers without distinction of origin, social class or nationality.
“As soon as regional management became aware of it, the document was immediately taken down . . . The SNCF repeats its regret over the initiative.”
A spokeswoman for the Romanian embassy said that while “obviously we would prefer for it not to have happened”, it was satisfied that “the SNCF has apologised and I don’t think we can ask for more than that”. Romanians have had the right to enter France freely since EU accession in 2007, but restrictions on their access to the labour market still apply.