Romanian refused accommodation in Dutch hotel due to his nationality
Romanian researcher Alexandru Hegyi revealed on social media that his hotel reservation in the Dutch city of Tilburg was canceled because of his nationality.
Hegyi, who is a scientific researcher in archeology at the Center for Southeast Asian Studies in Kyoto, Japan, made a reservation through the Booking platform at a hotel in the Dutch city of Tilburg. His reservation, however, was canceled, and hotel representatives explained that they could not accommodate him due to an agreement with the municipality. According to the alleged agreement, the hotel could not house Romanians because they are involved in illegal activities.
“Dear guest. Thank you for the reservation. But unfortunately, we have an agreement with the municipality of Tilburg, our accommodation no longer receives Romeinse people,” the message from the hotel read. “At the municipality of Tilburg there is still a fine of EUR 25,000 that we still have to pay because the Romeinse caught working girls secretly at our accommodation,” the message continued.
"They labeled me as a criminal just because I wanted to stay there for one night while visiting some friends in the city," the Romanian wrote on Facebook.
After he made the hotel's attitude public on social media, he was contacted by a local councilor from Tilburg, who admitted that the issue is "wider."
Hegyi says that following his complaint, he received a message from Booking informing him that they have ended their collaboration with the hotel in question. At the same time, Alexandru's case is being investigated by the Dutch anti-discrimination agency. The Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also taken notice and is conducting its own verification.
Romanian politicians and officials have also taken note of the case. "Romanian denied accommodation in the Netherlands just because he is Romanian! In the EU, which advocates against discrimination. This is outrageous!” said Romanian MEP Rares Bogdan on Facebook. He also vowed to bring the issue before EU institutions.
Romania’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs told EuropaFM that it contacted the Municipality of Tilburg, which stated that they do not tolerate discrimination and have never requested that Romanian tourists not be accommodated. Additionally, Dutch authorities have stated that they have not yet been able to locate the owner of the reported guesthouse.
“A small victory was won today, even though its taste is extremely bitter. Booking.com has removed the property from its website while continuing to investigate the issue. In addition, the Dutch anti-discrimination agency is conducting its own investigation," Alexandru Hegyi said.
Booking said it would refund the Romanian the amount of EUR 104.5 that he had paid for a night's stay at the hotel in question.
(Photo source: Dreamstime.com)