A Japanese inn in Shiga Prefecture that had banned Russians and Belarusians in protest against the invasion of Ukraine retracted the move Tuesday after being urged to do so by local authorities, the inn and local officials said.
The inn, located in Nagahama, admitted that rejecting guests from the two countries was the wrong way to denounce Russia's aggression against Ukraine. No customers from the two countries sought to stay at the inn while the ban was in place.
The inn's statement outlining the ban was originally posted on Feb. 26, just after Russia invaded its neighbor, according to the inn and Shiga officials. In the statement, the inn operator said it would "stop accepting any guests from Russia and Belarus" as it "opposes Russia's invasion of Ukraine." Belarus has faced sanctions from Japan and many Western countries for its role in facilitating Russia's war in Ukraine.
The Shiga Prefectural Government told the inn Monday that the statement is suspected of being in violation of the Hotel Business Act, which prohibits hoteliers from denying a person lodging except for some specific circumstances, such as when the person has an infectious disease.
Following the guidance from the officials, the inn deleted the statement and posted a new one saying it would accept guests from the two countries.
"(The inn) feels strong anger toward the behaviors of Russia and Belarus. However, the people of Russia and Belarus are innocent," it said in the new statement.
An inn spokesperson said that the previous statement was uploaded "out of feelings of wanting to stop the invasion quickly."