This article is brought to you by our exclusive subscriber partnership with our sister title USA Today, and has been written by our American colleagues. It does not necessarily reflect the view of The Herald. Ryanair chief Michael O’Leary has issued an apology for previously comparing competitor airlines to “rapists”, saying it has caused “considerable upset and offence”.
The billionaire was heavily criticised by politicians in both Ireland and the UK after he said it was “absolutely” appropriate to compare competitor airlines to “rapists”.
He had been urged by sexual violence victims’ groups and some politicians to apologise for his comments.
In a video message posted online, Mr O’Leary said that following conversations with friends and family, he has come to realise that his comments caused “considerable upset and offence”.
He apologised “sincerely and unreservedly” to people, especially survivors of sexual violence and rape.
“Last week at a press conference in Dublin, I used the term rapists to described the high fares of our competitor airlines. I was quizzed by the press if I was trivialising rape,” he told Virgin Media News on Friday.
“I replied by asserting my firm belief that rape is a heinous and terrible crime which cannot be trivialised.
“I believe I couldn’t have been clearer in this regard.
“In conversations with family and friends, both inside and outside Ryanair, over the last 10 days, I have come to realise, however, that the word I used so carelessly has caused considerable upset and offence to a wide number of people, especially victims and survivors.
“I want to apologise, sincerely and unreservedly to those people, especially to the survivors.
“I am truly sorry for the offence and upset I have caused you by my careless use of those words. It won’t happen again.
“I will try to learn from this mistake and do better in the future. Thank you.”
The airline boss had previously refused to apologise, despite calls from the chief executive of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre (DRCC), Rachel Morrogh, who said he had trivialised rape.
Mr O’Leary made the comment ahead of his airline’s annual general meeting in Dublin last Thursday.
He claimed rising air travel prices at other airlines would see passengers switch to Ryanair.
He told reporters at the company’s headquarters: “You might find some people will choose not to fly with Ryanair – but you know they’ll be overrun with the people abandoning Aer Lingus, Lufthansa, BA, and others desperate to get to Ryanair’s low fares because they can’t afford to fly with the high-fare rapists around Europe.”
He later repeated the “high-fare rapists” comments.
Asked by the Press Association whether this was appropriate language, Mr O’Leary told reporters: “Absolutely.”
He later said rape was a “terrible crime” but rejected the assertion he was trivialising rape.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin was among those who criticised his comments, but stopped short of stating that Mr O’Leary should apologise for the remarks.
Chief executive of Dublin Rape Crisis Centre Rachel Morrogh said: “Dublin Rape Crisis Centre welcomes Mr O’Leary’s apology and recognition that his comments caused concern and hurt to people who have been raped as well as to their families and friends.
“We hope Mr O’Leary’s apology helps promote a greater public understanding of the impact language can have and the harm that trivialising sexual violence can do.
“Words matter and positive leadership really matters as well, so we view Mr O’Leary’s apology as being very important. We remain committed to and focused on ensuring that the experiences of victims and survivors are treated with the seriousness, dignity and respect they deserve.”
Anyone affected by sexual violence of any form can get free and confidential support on the 24-hour National Helpline at 1800 77 88 88.
