A SIGN at a south Belfast shopping centre warning against loitering and begging has been branded "discriminatory" because it is also written in Polish and Romanian.
The notice displayed at Kingsway Shopping Centre in Dunmurry reads: "Begging and loitering in this area is not permitted. Should you continue the police will be notified."
The message is also translated into Polish and Romanian on the notice.
It ends with: "By order of DTZ McCombe Pierce LLP", a commercial real estate advisory firm based in Belfast.
Several of the notices have been fixed to walls and pillars around the retail site, which has various stores including a busy Tesco supermarket.
Patrick Yu, executive director of the Northern Ireland Council for Ethnic Minorities (Nicem), said the sign should be referred to equality officials.
"It is discriminatory against certain groups," he said.
"My immediate reaction is that we should inform the Equality Commission.
"I don't think that kind of notice is good. There is a different way of dealing with that kind of situation.
"The notice deters a certain group of people from going to the shop."
Mr Yu also expressed concern about how well 'loitering' translates into Polish and Romanian.
"By having the languages of Polish and Romanian they're deterring these groups of people," he said.
"The concept of loitering is difficult to understand and difficult to enforce and if you're using subjective language it could be determined as discriminatory."
DTZ McCombe Pierce LLP did not respond to requests for a comment.
The sign emerges just weeks after controversy over a charity billboard campaign on street beggars.
It urged people not to give money to those who live on the streets, but instead donate to charities tackling homelessness.
The 'Begging for Change' campaign has been promoted by the Depaul and the Welcome organisations, which both help the homeless.
It has also been backed by the PSNI, Housing Executive, Policing and Community Safety Partnership and Belfast City Centre Management.
But the campaign has proven divisive, and some weeks ago one of the billboards in west Belfast was defaced.
