Travel firm Tui has apologised after an advertising campaign invited Dutch tourists to follow their “brave ancestors” who enslaved people in the former colony of Suriname.
The company faced backlash online after the Suriname tour was shared on social media.
The South American country was colonised by The Netherlands in the 17th century.
A plantation economy was supported by African slave labour which produced sugar, before the country gained independence in 1975.
Travel firm Tui has apologised after an advertising campaign invited Dutch tourists to follow their “brave ancestors” who enslaved people in the former colony of Suriname
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The post read: “Step into the shoes of our brave ancestors and follow their tracks in green and adventurous Suriname.
“You cannot escape Dutch influences in Suriname. Our colonial ancestors founded hundreds of plantations that determined the image of the Commewijne district.”
Anti-racism group Kick Out Zwarte Piet hit back at the advert – demanding whether the “brave ancestors” were a reference to “the raping, violent, robbing colonisers” in Suriname.
The group also queried the holiday cost of €2,023, which matches the year a royal apology was made for Dutch crimes against humanity.
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Tui has since apologised and changed the description as it did not aim to introduce “people to the beauty of Suriname, with respect for the country, its people, and history”.
“We read this message with our heads bowed deep in the dust,” Tui said as the firm apologised “with embarrassment”.
A spokesperson added: “No doubt the copywriter did not mean it in a bad way, but we completely understand that it is hurtful and just stupid of us not to have noticed it.”
It comes just days after Tui were forced to apologised again when holiday makers were left stranded in Mexico after a flight back to Manchester Airport was delayed by 50 hours.
The South American country was colonised by The Netherlands in the 17th century
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The flight should have left Cancun on Saturday afternoon, but did not take off until Monday evening.
A Tui spokesman said: “We would like to apologise to customers who were due to depart from Cancun to Manchester on flight TOM155 on 9 March.
“Unfortunately, due to a technical issue with the aircraft we were unable to depart as scheduled. For the safety of our customers and crew, all customers disembarked the aircraft and remained in Cancun while safety procedures were performed.”
They added: “All customers will receive EU261 compensation and a £200 holiday voucher as a goodwill gesture.”
Source Agencies
