Nagasaki Prefecture's Watatsumi Shrine bans tourists due to nuisance caused by Koreans

Watatsumi Shrine in Tsushima City, Nagasaki Prefecture, has decided to ban tourists from entering the shrine. The shrine has been plagued by nuisance behavior by Korean tourists, and has been in the "Korean tourist ban" since last year.
According to Japanese media outlets such as the Sankei Shimbun on the 26th, Watatsumi Shrine in Tsushima City, Nagasaki Prefecture, recently announced on social media that "From the 23rd, entry to the shrine grounds will be prohibited for anyone other than believers and visitors.
"Photography and videography within the shrine, as well as live broadcasting, will also be prohibited," the shrine said, adding, "All bus tours for domestic and international tourists will also be banned."
"The unbearable mental distress caused by the destruction of the shrine and the abusive language and violence used against staff members have forced all staff members to feel that the operation of the shrine is in jeopardy," he said. "To protect the shrine and the hearts of the people, we have decided to express our regret."
"We will express and act on this," he emphasized. Tsushima, where the shrine is located, is about 50 kilometers from Busan, so it is visited by many Korean tourists.
According to the Sankei Shimbun newspaper, the shrine has been plagued by Korean tourists who smoke, litter, throw stones and defecate.
In particular, on the 22nd of this month, it was reported that a shrine employee was assaulted. The shrine said that a Korean man, speaking in the Gyeongsang dialect, was yelling at an employee who was trying to stop illegal parking near the shrine.
The shrine then installed a temporary structure at the entrance to the parking lot to prevent illegal parking.
On the other hand, some Korean tourists who have visited the shrine have expressed their displeasure, saying they have experienced so-called "anti-Korean sentiment."
Some of the videos were available. One YouTuber commented, "When I went there, I was suddenly chased away with a broom and a high-handed attitude, as if I was picking a fight," and "I was told to 'get out' in Korean, and it was a bad experience."
In June of last year, the shrine also posted a notice saying, "Korean tourists are not allowed inside the shrine." At the same time, they also posted police officers to stop Korean tourists from smoking inside the shrine.
They released footage showing a man getting annoyed at the staff, telling them "Why are you yelling so loudly?", and middle-aged Korean women singing and dancing.
Yuichi Hirayama of the shrine said in an interview with the Sankei Shimbun, "Most of the Korean tourists
"They have no respect for Japanese culture," he said, adding, "I feel anger welling up inside me at the way they are damaging Japan's traditional culture and treating the important culture of other countries so carelessly."