• France edition

'Speak English or die': French tourist told

Published: 23 Nov 2012 10:47 GMT+01:00 | Print version
Updated: 23 Nov 2012 10:47 GMT+01:00

A video of a French girl being told to “speak English or die” by fellow passengers on a bus in Australia has led to condemnation by local press and politicians.

The unnamed girl was coming back from a day at the beach with friends in Melbourne when a few of the passengers on the bus, notably two men, started shouting at her for singing popular French songs.

Another passenger, Mike Nayna, filmed the whole incident, admitting afterwards that he himself had been the victim of racial insults on public transport before.

One man shouted “speak English or die” to the French girl, and following jaunts from other passengers he said: “everybody on the bus wants to kill you, and you’re going to have to get off eventually, bitch”.

While speaking on his phone, he also described the girl as fat and “as ugly as f**king sin”, and threatened to cut her breasts off.

The Prime Minister of the state of Victoria, of which Melbourne is the capital, has called the incident “absolutely shameful, and has called upon other to “give these people up so they can be brought to justice.”

Australian media has largely responded by criticizing the actions of the other bus passengers.

In an editorial in the Sydney Morning Herald, a journalist fiercely criticised the behaviour of the “idiots” on the bus and explained the incident as “mass hysteria, (due to) a deficient education or an unhappy past”.

Nicola Hebden (news@thelocal.fr)

What do you think? Leave your comment below.

Your comments about this article:

The comments below have not been moderated in advance and are not produced by The Local unless clearly stated. Readers are responsible for the content of their own comments. Comments that breach our terms and conditions will be removed.

ADD YOUR COMMENT   (YOU MUST LOG IN OR REGISTER TO MAKE A COMMENT)
Today's headlines
Noah dismisses home French Open hopes
Yannick Noah celebrates his French Open win in 1983. Photo: STF/AFP

Noah dismisses home French Open hopes

Yannick Noah believes that none of the current crop of French tennis players are capable of matching his exploit in winning the French Open 30 years ago. READ () »

IMF's Lagarde in 12 hour court grilling
Photo: Jacques Demarthon/AFP

IMF's Lagarde in 12 hour court grilling

IMF chief Christine Lagarde's future was at stake Friday as French prosecutors grilled her for a second day to decide if she should be charged over a state payout to a disgraced tycoon when she was finance minister. READ () »

Mobile app to help fight against racism in France
A file image of an iPhone 4. Photo: John Karakatsanis/Flickr

Mobile app to help fight against racism in France

A French anti-racism association is launching a mobile application it hopes will help eradicate racist graffiti by enabling users to take photos of offensive tags, geo-locate them and get them removed. READ () »

Language barriers
Top Ten: English terms the French want barred
Photo: Ashok666

Top Ten: English terms the French want barred

When it comes to fighting off the invasion of English words the French Resistance has had mixed fortunes over the years. Nevertheless the fight goes on. With the help of the Ministry of Culture here's a list of the latest English terms that French authorities want deported. READ () »

Street crime hurts Paris tourism: fashion brands
Elisabeth Ponsolle des Portes (l), here shown handbags in Dubai in 2010, worries "Paris is getting a reputation of total insecurity". Photo: Randi Sokoloff/AFP

Street crime hurts Paris tourism: fashion brands

The streets of Paris are getting a reputation for being unsafe for tourists and this is a threat to business for the great brand names of French fashion, a top body representing the luxury industry warned on Friday. READ () »

Amnesty wants Hollande to up human rights effort
Protesters at an Amnesty International demo in Paris. Photo: Fred Dufour/AFP

Amnesty wants Hollande to up human rights effort

Rights watchdog Amnesty International has filed its end of year report on French President François Hollande's record on tackling human rights issues. Its conclusion was: Could do better. READ () »

Thrill seeker dies 'train surfing' on Paris Metro
File photo: Thomas Ulrich

Thrill seeker dies 'train surfing' on Paris Metro

The dangerous craze of ‘train surfing', which has long been popular in Russia, came to France this week and ended in tragic circumstances. A young man who was reportedly riding the roof of a Paris Metro was killed when the train entered a tunnel. READ () »

Call for probe into sale of Printemps to Qataris
The famous French store Printemps, set to be bought by Qatari investors. Photo: MadebyMark/flickr

Call for probe into sale of Printemps to Qataris

The purchase of the famous upmarket French department store Printemps by investors from Qatar needs to be investigated by authorities for possible corruption, money laundering and tax fraud, unions demanded this week. READ () »

France scraps plan to limit fat cat salaries
A plan to cut fat cat pay in the private sector has been ditched. Photo: Images of Money/Flickr

France scraps plan to limit fat cat salaries

The proposal was labelled by critics as another example of France's Socialist government attacking the richest. But after a u-turn announced on Friday the plan to limit executive pay in the private sector will not now see the light of day. READ () »

Man held suspected of eating his grandmother
Photo: Victor/Flickr

Man held suspected of eating his grandmother

It could easily be the script of a grisly horror movie. Police arrested a man in Nice this week, suspected of chopping up his 95-year-old grandmother. According to sources the suspect admitted to having eaten part of the body. READ () »

Highlights
Photo: M&S
Hollande's first year: Top 10 Nightmare Moments
Revealed: France's Best Restaurants in 2013
French Face of the Week
French politicians reveal their wealth
Ten best chat-up lines to use in French
Opinion
Ten most embarrassing mistakes to avoid in French
Fred Dufour/AFP
Photo: AP
Simone Ramella
Latest news from The Local in Sweden

More news from Sweden at thelocal.se

Latest news from The Local in Germany

More news from Germany at thelocal.de

Latest news from The Local in Switzerland

More news from Switzerland at thelocal.ch

Latest news from The Local in Norway

More news from Norway at thelocal.no