The operator of a hotel that refused to accept former Hansen's disease patients last year said Monday that the establishment will close down.
Tadao Eguchi, president of Aistar Co., operator of Ai-Ladies Kyuden Kurokawa Onsen Hotel in the popular Kurokawa Onsen hot spring resort, made the announcement after explaining the decision to the hotel's 38 employees.
The move comes on the heels of media reports Sunday that the Kumamoto Prefectural Government planned to order the hotel to suspend business because of its actions.
In November, the hotel refused to accept the former patients as guests after learning of their medical history, saying such an act would not be understood by other guests. The action drew public criticism but also served to show how deep-rooted discrimination toward former Hansen's sufferers is in Japan.