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Japan Forward
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Japan Forward
Kyoto Lodging Exposed for Discriminating Against Israeli Guest
The line between private policy and discrimination is under scrutiny after Kyoto lodgings made discriminatory demands of prospective Israeli guests. It emerged on May 8 that an Israeli tourist was asked to sign a declaration denying involvement in war crimes at a lodging facility in Kyoto, according to information obtained from those involved. The Embassy of Israel in Japan lodged a formal protest with the Governor of Kyoto Prefecture and the Mayor of Kyoto City, denouncing the incident as "discriminatory." In a separate case, another Kyoto hotel reportedly refused to accommodate an Israeli tourist. The Israeli embassy is urging Japanese authorities to investigate the incidents. It is also calling for measures to prevent similar occurrences in the future. Sources say that in April, a tourist presented his Israeli passport when checking in at a lodging in Kyoto. He was then asked to sign a written statement declaring he had "never been involved in war crimes." At the time, he was serving as a reservist in Israel's Navy. The declaration included a denial of involvement in attacks on civilians, including women and children. One line read, "I pledge to continue complying with international law and humanitarian law and to never engage in war crimes in any form." Initially, the visitor refused to sign, saying he did not want to be involved in political matters. However, since he had never been involved in any war crimes and did not want to cause trouble, he ultimately agreed to sign. After learning of the incident, Israeli Ambassador to Japan Gilad Cohen submitted a written request to Kyoto Governor Takatoshi Nishiwaki and Kyoto City Mayor Koji Matsui, urging them to investigate the facts and take preventive measures. In response, Kyoto City held a meeting with the lodging on April 24. Fushimi Inari Taisha in Kyoto. (©Jason Halayko) In response to a Sankei Shimbun inquiry, the lodging representative emphasized, "There was absolutely no intent to exclude or discriminate based solely on nationality." As for the reason behind requesting the signature, they made the excuse that it was due to "significant fear and concern about individuals deemed to have been involved in war crimes." Reportedly, the lodging applies the declaration to people from 10 countries and regions. Those include Israel, Russia, and Palestine, which have been involved with military or paramilitary operations in the past 10 years. While the facility has no plans to change its policy, it expressed willingness to comply with any guidance from Kyoto City. There was also another case involving Israeli tourists visiting Kyoto in June 2024. In that case, a hotel refused a booking on the grounds that the guest was affiliated with the Israeli military. Kyoto City issued administrative guidance to the hotel operator, stating that refusal of accommodation based on nationality or occupation is not permitted under Japan's Hotel Business Act. In an interview with The Sankei Shimbun , Ambassador Cohen reiterated that requiring the declaration was discriminatory and unacceptable. He strongly urged appropriate action on this problem by the Japanese authorities. Author: Mizuki Okada, The Sankei Shimbun
Tokyo Reported
22-04-2025
- Tokyo Reported
Video captures apparent 'customer harassment' at Expo 2025
OSAKA (TR) – It's been a week since the Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai opened. As of Sunday, the total number of visitors, including those involved, has exceeded 700,000. It is expected that even more people will visit during Golden Week holiday period, which starts this weekend. The event aims to take a look at what the future holds. But one incident of apparent 'customer harassment' that took place last week is firmly rooted in the present. At around 4:00 p.m. on April 17, a man began yelling a second man believed to be a security guard near the west gate of the Expo site. 'The man was yelling angrily. He shouted something like 'get down on your knees' at the security guard,' said a person who captured the incident on video, according to Fuji News Network (Apr. 21). 'I can't say for sure what happened between them, but I heard a loud voice say, 'Get down on your knees.' And the guard got down on his knees. There was another guard next to me, and while he was yelling, we were saying, 'This is customer harassment.'' Kasuhara 'Customer harassment' describes disruptive behavior by customers toward customer service workers. Written as kasuhara in Japanese, such behavior includes customers swearing, making unreasonable demands or carrying out violence. In 2017, trade union UA Zensen published a study whereby it was revealed that 70 percent of its 50,000 members had been victims of harassment of some kind. Three years ago, the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare published a manual for businesses on how to deal with problematic customers. The following year, the Hotel Business Act was amended to give hoteliers the power to not accept business form poorly behaving guests. 'They did look apologetic' In the case of the security guard, the male customer demanded that he carry out dogeza , meaning to prostrate oneself on the ground. Not long after he issued the command, his family arrived at the scene. 'I don't know if the family apologized, but they did look apologetic,' the person who shot the clip said. Whether the incident is actually customer harassment depends on exactly what the man said to the security guard before he got down on his knees, says lawyer Masaki Kamei. 'For example, it cannot be ruled out that the security guard voluntarily did so in an attempt to apologize more than necessary,' Kamei said. 'So, it is necessary to prove that the dogeza was the result of some kind of verbal harassment or physical action.'
