Holiday Britons ‘ humiliated’ for wearing burkinis
TWO British women said they were left ‘humiliated’ after being told their burkini-style swimming costumes were unacceptable by staff at a resort in Portugal.
Maryya Dean and her sister-in-law Hina were relaxing by the pool when they were told by a male manager their outfits did ‘not follow Portuguese culture’ and they should put on bikinis. They claimed they were told staff had received a complaint about their swimsuits from another guest and that following the ‘disgusting’ incident’ they felt forced to do a ‘walk of shame’ back to their apartment.
Mrs Dean was wearing a swimming costume and waterproof leggings, while Hina was wearing three-quarter length leggings and a waterproof top with elbow-length sleeves. They said they were not wearing full ‘burkinis’, which cover the entire body and head and are typically worn by Muslim women in order to respect Islamic traditions of modest dress.
The pair had opted to wear the swimsuits for ‘religious, cultural, confidence and comfort’ reasons during the family holiday in Albufeira in the Algarve, but their children were in regular swimwear.
Mrs Dean said the week-long trip was supposed to be a relaxing getaway but the whole family had been left humiliated and upset by the incident.
The 36-year-old, from Chessington, Surrey, claimed the manager even made her nineyear-old daughter stand up to provide an example of what they should be wearing
‘Given my cultural background I was wearing a burkini,’ she said. ‘I was approached by the building security manager as someone made a complaint that I was not wearing a bikini and therefore not appropriate to be in the pool.
‘I was compared to my nineyear- old daughter who was told to stand up ... to see what she was wearing, which I found completely rude.
‘I was not allowed to wear swimming gear that I am com-
‘Not acceptable in Portugal’
fortable in and that was ... made for women like me to wear.’
She told the Mirror Online: ‘The man then started making cultural references and said that Portuguese people wear bikinis and so should we.
‘We had to do a “walk of shame” back to the apartment, it was disgusting.’
Her sister-in-law added: ‘He said “you have to wear a bikini or shorts. In Portuguese culture, it’s not acceptable” ... We were feeling really humiliated.’
The family said they felt unable to use the pool for the rest of their holiday after the incident on July 21. They did not name the apartment complex.
Last year, a number of resorts on the French Riviera tried to ban burkinis but were overruled by the country’s top administrative court.