Chinese banned from Prague Vietnamese restaurant to "protect public health"

Prague, Feb 6 (CTK) – A Vietnamese restaurant in Prague has posted a notice on its door saying that Chinese clients are temporarily not received there for the sake of protection of public health, the daily Lidove noviny (LN) writes today.

The photo has appeared on the Facebook profile named The Prague Geezer, LN writes.

The notice says in three languages, English, Czech and Chinese: “To protect public health, the restaurant will temporarily not attend Chinese customers. Thank you for your understanding.”

A restaurant employee has told the paper that the text was only posted for a few hours, during which there was no contact with any Chinese customer.

The photograph provoked anger at social networks, whose users are speaking about xenophobia and discrimination, LN writes.

“We are human beings, no virus. Stop judging,” a Chinese user said.

The author of the contribution has turned to the restaurant, asking it for explanation.

“This is discrimination. Might they tell no to homosexuals? Or Britons? Or blacks?” he asked.

“There is a flu epidemic in the Czech Republic, but no ban on the ill is announced, only on the Chinese. Actually, how can one distinguish a Chinese? Will all Asians have to produce passports at the entrance?” he added.

A sanitary officer has told the paper that restaurants should only observe approved sanitary measures within prevention of infections.

The ban on Chinese to enter is not among them, she added.

The notice appeared at the moment the world is facing the new coronavirus outbreak with its focus in China. In the Czech Republic, no suspicion of the illness has been confirmed, LN writes.