Allegations that a Sodwana Bay guest house denied accommodation to a black woman because of her skin colour are being investigated, a KwaZulu-Natal MEC said yesterday.
"We condemn the behaviour of the owner of the guest house in the strongest terms possible. Such behaviour, if true, is not only abhorrent, but it is has no place in the new South Africa we are all trying to build,” Tourism MEC Sihle Zikalala said.
News24 reported earlier that an email to a prospective client of the Sodwana Bay Guest House went viral on social media, after it refused the booking on racist grounds.
The email reads: "Hi. We do not accommodate black or government officials any longer." It was signed Enki André M Slade, with the postscript Proverbs 29:2, which reads: "when the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn".
The Star reportedly contacted the owner of the guest house. André Slate, who confirmed the email was authentic.
News24 could not immediately reach Slate for comment.
Zikalala said he had asked his officials to conduct a preliminary investigation to determine the facts. This would include contacting the alleged perpetrator and the victim.
He said the department had contacted the local municipality to establish whether the business was registered and operating in according with its licencing regulations.
Tourism contributed billions of rands to the provincial economy, he said.
“We cannot allow one individual to sully our reputational image as a tourism destination that is welcoming to all our people."
Source: News24
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