Swiss hotel sparks outrage by asking Jewish guests to shower before swimming
The Local - [email protected]
Published: 15 Aug, 2017 CET.
Updated: Tue 15 Aug 2017 14:05 CET
A hotel in Arosa, in the eastern Swiss canton of Graubünden, has made international headlines for displaying signs singling out Jewish guests by asking them to shower before using the swimming pool.
The sign, displayed at the Aparthaus Paradies, was photographed by an Israeli family who were visiting the hotel, reported Swiss and international press including The Jerusalem Post.
“To our Jewish Guests. Please take a shower before you go swimming and although [sic] after swimming,” it said in English. “If you break the rules, I’m forced to cloes [sic] the swimming pool for you. Thank you for understanding."
It was signed Ruth Thomann, whose name is listed on the hotel’s website as the main contact.
A second sign asked Jewish guests to access the hotel fridge at set times only.
The father of the Israeli family told Israeli media that Thomann was helpful and friendly during their visit, and that they didn’t address the issue of the signs because they “didn’t want to start a confrontation”.
However the photo has since gone viral, attracting condemnation from many, including Israel’s deputy foreign minister Tzipi Hotovely, who called it “an ugly display of anti-Semitism” and told the press she had spoken to the Israeli ambassador to Switzerland about the issue.
The Local was unable to contact Thomann on Tuesday, however she has responded to the articles in Israeli press, apologizing for her “wrong words”.
“I have nothing against Jews, whom we regularly receive warmly here,” she told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. “I may have selected the wrong words; the signs should have been addressed to all the guests instead of Jewish ones.”
It was only the hotel’s Jewish guests who went into the pool while wearing T-shirts and without showering first, she added.
Thomann said she had now removed the signs.
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The sign, displayed at the Aparthaus Paradies, was photographed by an Israeli family who were visiting the hotel, reported Swiss and international press including The Jerusalem Post.
“To our Jewish Guests. Please take a shower before you go swimming and although [sic] after swimming,” it said in English. “If you break the rules, I’m forced to cloes [sic] the swimming pool for you. Thank you for understanding."
It was signed Ruth Thomann, whose name is listed on the hotel’s website as the main contact.
A second sign asked Jewish guests to access the hotel fridge at set times only.
The father of the Israeli family told Israeli media that Thomann was helpful and friendly during their visit, and that they didn’t address the issue of the signs because they “didn’t want to start a confrontation”.
However the photo has since gone viral, attracting condemnation from many, including Israel’s deputy foreign minister Tzipi Hotovely, who called it “an ugly display of anti-Semitism” and told the press she had spoken to the Israeli ambassador to Switzerland about the issue.
The Local was unable to contact Thomann on Tuesday, however she has responded to the articles in Israeli press, apologizing for her “wrong words”.
“I have nothing against Jews, whom we regularly receive warmly here,” she told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. “I may have selected the wrong words; the signs should have been addressed to all the guests instead of Jewish ones.”
It was only the hotel’s Jewish guests who went into the pool while wearing T-shirts and without showering first, she added.
Thomann said she had now removed the signs.
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