South African Ryanair passenger forced to take test in Afrikaans
South African national Dinesh Joseph says he was forced to take a test in Afrikaans, a language he doesn't speak, to board a Ryanair flight.
Only around 13% of South Africans speak Afrikaans as a first language, making it the country's third-most spoken mother tongue.
The language has triggered emotions in South Africa because of its controversial role in the oppression of the black majority during apartheid.
After taking the test using the assistance of an online translation service, Mr Joseph was allowed to board his flight from Lanzarote to London Stansted.
In a statement, the Ireland-based airline said: "The South African Govt has already warned passengers (and airlines) of the risk of syndicates selling fake SA passports.
"In order to minimise the risk of fake passport usage, Ryanair requires passengers on a South African passport to fill out a simple questionnaire in the Afrikaans language.
"If they are unable to complete this questionnaire, they will be refused travel and issued with a full refund instead."
Produced and edited by Soraya Ali
