Kyoto hotel's refusal to accommodate Israeli man illegal, city says

That hotel have good service review that almost reach maximum star in most review sites, that happens prior that refusal event. Now that hotel will even have more potential visitor that pro Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) against genocide. Recently it's difficult to check whether product or services are really doing BDS, at least that hotel showing their stand and actual view about genocide. Well done!

That hotel have good service review that almost reach maximum star in most review sites, that happens prior that refusal event. Now that hotel will even have more potential visitor that pro Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) against genocide. Recently it's difficult to check whether product or services are really doing BDS, at least that hotel showing their stand and actual view about genocide. Well done!

Supporting BDS and discriminating against people based entirely on their nationality are two entirely separate things, the latter being disgusting.

sakurasuki@you are praising a hotel for breaking Japanese law, which bans that kind of discrimation. Also, it's not the hotel that's "showing its stand," but only its young Brazilian manager. Who will probably find himself out of a job in the very near future.

@NCIS Reruns

Also, it's not the hotel that's "showing its stand," but only its young Brazilian manager. Who will probably find himself out of a job in the very near future.

That hotel or that manager might find a new niche of customer which can increase their sale, especially with Kyoto that always crowded with tourist from time to time.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/5/22/mapping-which-countries-recognise-palestine-in-2024

.

That also many survey that Gen-Z, which are tech savvy, they're not supporting genocide that being done to Palestine anymore. That also new customer segment.

https://thehill.com/opinion/international/4353828-why-is-gen-z-so-pro-palestine-and-anti-israel/

.

One stone two birds, showing the world that not supporting genocide but also increase their sales. Well done!

The city, having investigated the matter, said the hotel's justification for rejecting the man's online booking "is not a legitimate reason for denying accommodation."

Even Japan's bureaucracy and injustice system, not known for responding forthrightly to cases of discrimination, know not to cross the legal firepower of the Israeli Embassy.

Not all Israelis are Zionists, not all Jews support genocidal racist policies. I certainly do not support many of the actions of my country and would not like to be banned from staying in a hotel due to this.

only its young Brazilian manager.

He not terribly young. He’s definitely old enough to know better. According to his public LinkedIn profile, he graduated university in 2009, so he’s likely in his mid to late 30s.

The hotel is only in trouble because the guy was an Israeli. I know plenty of foreigners who have been turned down for apartments (as people mentioned above), onsens and hotels. In fact it happened to me a few years ago and I speak fluent Japanese. I think many foreigners who have been here for some time would have similar stories.

I am under no illusion that I would have been brushed aside immediately if I had complained to the authorites regarding ANY of the discriminatory practices that have taken place against me or people I know here over the years. And my cases would certainly NEVER have made national news.

That's the power of Israel and it's truly global reach. It's actually frightening.

Occupier supporters always try to show that everything suddenly happened because 10/7. People just don't wake up suddenly do something like that. There must be generational pain, injustice and anger that being built from time to time.

I never said that but go off queen. That bites two ways you know. Israel doesn’t have the policy they do towards Gaza just for fun. It’s a direct result of hostile actions that have historically come out of the area

The hotel is only in trouble because the guy was an Israeli.

exactly.

I know plenty of foreigners who have been turned down for apartments (as people mentioned above), onsens and hotels. 

same

The hotel is only in trouble because the guy was an Israeli. I know plenty of foreigners who have been turned down for apartments (as people mentioned above), onsens and hotels. In fact it happened to me a few years ago and I speak fluent Japanese. I think many foreigners who have been here for some time would have similar stories.

Very true. However, in this case, the hotel manager actually wrote the rejection in a text and explained his reasons in detail.

The traveler simply forwarded that text over to the Israeli Embassy, which then took action.

Most of us who have experienced similar discrimination just tell our friends and family members in disbelief, and we generally don’t have documentary evidence.

Asiaman7

Thanks. You're dead right. And my original comment somehow gone (I wonder why).

(Part of my original comment):

The hotel is only in trouble because the guy was an Israeli. I know plenty of foreigners who have been turned down for apartments (as people mentioned above), onsens and hotels. In fact it happened to me a few years ago and I speak fluent Japanese. I think many foreigners who have been here for some time would have similar stories.

Very true. However, in this case, the hotel manager actually wrote the rejection in a text and explained his reasons in detail.

The traveler simply forwarded that text over to the Israeli Embassy, which then took action.

Most of us who have experienced similar discrimination just tell our friends and family members in disbelief, and we generally don’t have documentary evidence.

Most of us who have experienced similar discrimination just tell our friends and family members in disbelief, and we generally don’t have documentary evidence.

Might be. Somehow I doubt my embassy would get the same results though.

I've had two comments deleted here already in an hour.

Would it be ok to discriminate against a South African in the apartheid era ?

Would it be ok to discriminate against a South African in the apartheid era ?

No

Would it be ok to discriminate against a South African in the apartheid era ?

Not according to Japan's hotel law. Which you benefit from too, by the way.

Would it be ok to discriminate against a South African in the apartheid era ?

Of course not. Plenty of white South Africans were against apartheid, some were imprisoned and even murdered for their protests. And certainly not all Israelis agree with the Israeli government's policies.

Good that this rogue hotel has been dealt with. They will be watched closely.

BTW, 20% of Israel's population are Arabs. Most don't serve in the defense forces, but some do. Others perform other kinds of national service. How would the hotel deal with them? Having to nit-pick between Jewish, Muslim, Christian and Druze Israelis presents a real challenge to the BDS crowd.

It is HAMAS that, knowingly of its consequences, started his vicious attack. Citizens of the attacked country should not be mistreated.

Wake up, people! A genocide is taking place in front of our very eyes. BDS is the only peaceful moral stance.

Ok a mate of mine did some digging around. Seems the hotel manager was not Japanese. Here is a link with screenshots of the exchange. Absolutely wild.

https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2024/06/e558aec2503d-update1-kyoto-hotels-refusal-to-accommodate-israeli-man-illegal-city.html

Leila@What sort of morals allow Hamas to use the civilian population of Gaza as human shields? Its leader, Sinwar, has been quoted on record as saying he's indifferent to Palestinian casualties. After all, the end justifies the means, and the means in his case is that Israel, by responding to a homicidal attack, should be marked as a war criminal.

The hotel is correct.

This article says: "citing possible ties with his country's military engaging in conflict in the Gaza Strip"

Note the phrase "engaging in conflict".

This is not an accurate description of the hotel's position. The hotel maintains that there is reason to believe the Israeli in question is connected with war crimes. Note war crimes.

The hotel maintains that it could be held as complicit if it were to host such a person.

Note also the article states the law allows "special circumstances". The Kyoto city ruling avoided all of these issues.

Laila KholoussiToday 08:55 am JST

Wake up, people! A genocide is taking place in front of our very eyes. BDS is the only peaceful moral stance.

BDS doesn't target average citizens.

BellflowerToday 09:13 am JST

The hotel is correct.

This article says: "citing possible ties with his country's military engaging in conflict in the Gaza Strip"

Note the phrase "engaging in conflict".

This is not an accurate description of the hotel's position. The hotel maintains that there is reason to believe the Israeli in question is connected with war crimes. Note war crimes.

It's not the job of a hotel to conduct background checks on its guests.

The way in which the Kyoto city administration has unjustly treated this hotel should be noted by the countless tourists who flock to the city with only a rosy view of Kyoto. Of course the administration does not reflect the real views of the majority of good Kyoto people. Rather the city administration reflects the position of the LDP which parrots everything the US media and government says and does.

If you think this is simply a matter of the power of the Israeli Embassy, think again. Behind Israel is the US. Israel is completely funded and supported by the US.

citing possible ties with his country's military engaging in conflict in the Gaza Strip

Unfounded personal ties that the article later admits:

“This serious incident appears to be due to an employee's personal political views”

The hotel maintains that there is reason to believe the Israeli in question is connected with war crimes

It doesn’t say that anywhere in the article and other sources say it was the decision of 1 person, the manager, not the hotel.

Note also the article states the law allows "special circumstances". 

Those special circumstances don’t qualify for this case though, which is why the city warned the hotel of the illegal act.

https://www.japaneselawtranslation.go.jp/en/laws/view/3272/en

Hotel Business Law

Article 5

A hotelier must not deny a person lodging except in a case falling under one of the following items:

(i)it is evident that the person seeking lodging has an infectious disease;

(ii)it appears likely that the person seeking lodging would gamble or engage in other unlawful activities, or would take part in activities injurious to public morals;

(iii)a hotelier is not in a position to accommodate the person in its lodging facilities, or there are other grounds that the prefecture prescribes by ordinance.

The way in which the Kyoto city administration has unjustly treated this hotel should be noted by the countless tourists who flock to the city with only a rosy view of Kyoto.

How is it unjust? Because you don’t like it? They got in trouble for committing an illegal act. It was literally a crime.

Of course the administration does not reflect the real views of the majority of good Kyoto people.

Are you under the impression that there is some hidden super-majority of Japanese citizens just lurking in the shadows itching to ban Israeli’s from all institutions in the country? Are those people in the room with you now?

The charge against the hotel that they are guilty of "discrimination" is laughable. The hotel is concerned about hosting members of the Israeli military, not all Israelis.

It is well known that there are huge protests in Israel against Netanyahu's government. Not all Israelis support Netanyahu's crimes. One of the hostages, the dancer, famously condemned Netanyahu after she was released.

Where does utterly dishonest charge of "discrimination" come from. Naturally it comes from the US media, the same US which is funding and enabling everything Israel does in Gaza. The US media charges the Americans who protest all this with being "anti-semitic". The US media falsely claims the protesters are anti-Jewish when in fact the protesters are anti-genocide.

The hotel manager just needs to say he was drunk and doesn't remember and it all will be swept under the rug.

The hotel manager just needs to say he was drunk and doesn't remember and it all will be swept under the rug.

When has that ever happened in Japan? Ever?

Basically it wasn't the hotel policy, but just it's Brasilian racist and xenophobic manager.

Evidence that 1 man can ruin the reputation of a hoog hotel

Bone...I guess you are too young to remember the apartheid era.

It was discrimination AGAINST it that saw it fall.

Sporting teams from South Africa were eventually boycotted.

Trade sanctions applied.

South African passport holders {blancs } refused entry into many countries.

Israel still kept diplomatic relations with this modern era abomination, AND provided weapons to keep the system in place.

And Israel's behaviour toward Gaza, in opposition to what you say, has been condemned by nearly every nation.

Not the Gazan's who started the ball rolling.

Q. "Do you support Netanyahu's war on Palestinian civilians in Gaza and the West Bank?

A. Yes/No

SORTED!

And "discrimination " in this context is a CIVIL...not CRIMINAL matter....so no "crime " was committed.

You'd do well to understand the difference.

Civil law outcomes result in "directions " and fines...not jail or other criminal law penalties.

Cant imagine any cell talk that goes

"What are you in for ?"

"Oh, discrimination of a tourist "

Q. "Do you support Netanyahu's war on Palestinian civilians in Gaza and the West Bank?

Congratulations! You get 50 thumbs down by serving up what is known as a "loaded question."

The charge against the hotel that they are guilty of "discrimination" is laughable. The hotel is concerned about hosting members of the Israeli military, not all Israelis.

Thats literally still discrimination. The manager doesn’t specifically state it’s “because he’s a member of the Israeli military” either so you’re wrong on that point as well.

Where does utterly dishonest charge of "discrimination" come from.

Because it’s literally discrimination

dis·crim·i·na·tion: the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people, especially on the grounds of ethnicity, age, sex, or disability.

Where does utterly dishonest charge of "discrimination" come from. Naturally it comes from the US media, the same US which is funding and enabling everything Israel does in Gaza. The US media charges the Americans who protest all this with being "anti-semitic". The US media falsely claims the protesters are anti-Jewish when in fact the protesters are anti-genocide.

This is a perfect example of “AMERICA BAD” brain rot: A Brazilian living in Japan bans an Israeli from the hotel and somehow it’s America’s fault. Unbelievable.

So... a verbal reprimand. I notice there was no talk of any punishment besides. Why not threaten at least to revoke their hotel business license if they do not heretofore allow the man accommodation (or any other person)? I guess that might set a dangerous precedent especially for Kyoto -- which seems to want to ban foreigners from all sorts of places, or just tax them more.

No action taken! Well done authorities, you are waiting for more such incidents to be reported before you think about what to do years later.

It's illegal under Japanese law. And probably many other countries. Case closed.

No action taken! Well done authorities, you are waiting for more such incidents to be reported before you think about what to do years later.

The national or local governments first tend to issue a warning, called 指導 (shido), "instruction," and if the object of this instruction persists in violating the ordinance or law, it risks getting slapped with something stronger, such as 営業停止処分 (an order to suspend its business for a fixed period of time). One would be well advised to heed a shido.

This article is about discrimination. It's sickening to see it be applauded because the customer (here in Japan) is of Israel ethnicity. It's disgusting. Hey, why don't we just charge the Japanese double in Hawaii because we all know they are rich?! Or let's not let the Americans in to Japan because there was an attack on Japanese tourist in Houston the other day and you never know what they might do in Tokyo. That foreign Toyota employee sure looked shady on the train last week.

Now, back to this article, the hotel was wrong to discriminate against their customer just because of nationality or ethnicity. This is 2024!! Not 1955!!

Bone...you said this act of "discrimination " ...."was literally a CRIME "

I said "no it comes under CIVIL not Criminal law."

Clear now.

NOT a CRIME.

It was wrong for the hotel to refuse a customer's booking when there were available rooms, regardless of the customer's identity. Refusing the customer because they were Jewish constitutes antisemitism. The hotel should formally apologize and offer the customer a small compensation as a goodwill gesture.

I have a "legal " question. The "discrimination " occurred over a hotels refusal to accept a booking.

A "hotel " is a property.

Is this "refusal " then an offence under Japan's "Property Law" ?

what an idiot.

I hope every Israeli tourist visiting Kyoto stays at this hotel and this bigoted Brazilian hotel employee has to serve all of them with a smile.

Neither the Israeli Embassy nor the Israeli man denied the connection with the Israeli military. Naturally they prefer not to talk about the subject of the Israeli military since they know its war crimes are despised worldwide.

This connection with Israeli war crimes was the reason for the denial of service at Hotel Material... not nationality.

Neither the Israeli Embassy nor the Israeli man denied the connection with the Israeli military. Naturally they prefer not to talk about the subject of the Israeli military since they know its war crimes are despised worldwide.

This connection with Israeli war crimes was the reason for the denial of service at Hotel Material... not nationality.

You do realize that you have to serve in the IDF if you live in Israel, right? I guarantee you every person in Israel has some connection to the military be it through their own service, friends or family.

tora:

The hotel is only in trouble because the guy was an Israeli. I know plenty of foreigners who have been turned down for apartments (as people mentioned above), onsens and hotels. In fact it happened to me a few years ago and I speak fluent Japanese. I think many foreigners who have been here for some time would have similar stories.

Exactly. I don't agree with banning someone simply because of their nationality (in which case, those posters who agree are going to have a dilemma on their hands because they most likely support banning the average Russian from everything), but why is the Japanese government not showing the same enthusiasm toward the problems of foreigners not being able to find apartments easily because of the rampant racism?

Let's look at how the LDP responded:

"Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa said it is "unacceptable" to refuse accommodation on the basis of nationality."

So in this statement Kamikawa ignores the issue of the individual's connection to the Israeli military and falsely poses the issue as one of nationality, basically repeating the Israeli Embassy position.

This makes one wonder what exactly is the LDP position on Gaza? Do you notice that Kishida talks and smiles endlessly about Ukraine, but is tight-lipped and vague about Gaza.

So in this statement Kamikawa ignores the issue of the individual's connection to the Israeli military and falsely poses the issue as one of nationality, basically repeating the Israeli Embassy position

There is no connection proven by the manager that this person had any connection to the military.

Its 100% discrimination

Discrimination, plain and simple. Clear as day.

The city warned the hotel of the illegal act verbally on Thursday and via a written document on Friday.

Not enough. This establishment should not be insulated. Should be severely fined and the manager or any persons involved making the (no stay) decision should be immediately terminated.