A customer uses a hand cleaning station in Tokyo’s Ameya Yokocho market on Dec. 30.
Photographer: Noriko Hayashi / Bloomberg
Photographer: Noriko Hayashi / Bloomberg
Japan’s central government has not declared a state of emergency in Tokyo and three neighboring prefectures, despite local authorities urging virus Tsar Yasutoshi Nishimura to do so to contain an outbreak that shows little sign of diminishing.
The government will again consult experts before making a decision, Nishimura said at a news conference Saturday after a three-hour meeting with governors from Tokyo and surrounding prefectures.
“We agreed that the metropolitan area is in a situation severe enough to imply a state of emergency,” said Nishimura. The request of the four governors will be considered, he said.
Nishimura said the central government will ask the four prefectures to ask restaurants and bars to stop serving alcohol at 7pm and close at 8pm. The government will also ask people not to go out after 8 p.m. unless there is an essential or urgent need, and will support stores that comply with the request, he said.
Tokyo governor Yuriko Koike and governors of Kanagawa, Chiba and Saitama made the request directly to Nishimura with the cabinet on Saturday, amid renewed data on coronavirus cases. Together, the four prefectures account for more than a quarter of the country’s gross domestic product.
“Our response measures have had some impact,” Koike told reporters at the same news conference. “But looking at the number of infections and the state of the health system in our four prefectures, there is an immediate need to suppress people’s movements.”
Japan’s capital reported a record 1,337 new cases of coronavirus on New Year’s Eve as the onset of cold weather caused infections even after the city stepped up its containment efforts. On Saturday, the number of serious cases rose to the highest since May 3.
Japan’s stance on emergencies appears to be shifting as things grow
Japan briefly issued a state of emergency in April and May in response to the first wave of coronavirus cases. Earlier this week, Nishimura said the country could consider an emergency if infections continue at the current rate. Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga brushed aside direct questions about it in comments to reporters on Thursday night.
An emergency declaration allows local officials to take measures, such as canceling events, limiting the use of facilities such as schools and cinemas, and appropriating sites or buildings for temporary medical facilities.
Due to civil liberties enshrined in Japan’s post-war constitution, the government cannot send police to remove people from the streets, as has happened in France, Italy and the UK, among others.
It lacks the legal means to enforce a European-style lockdown, and its ability to control the spread of the virus without there being one is now being questioned. In addition, officials have avoided severe restrictions as they try to get the country’s pandemic economy back on track.
Japan Virus Emergency is counting on citizens to lock themselves up
However, the impact of an emergency statement is probably more of a psychological move. Tokyo had already requested that restaurants close at 10 p.m., and the metropolitan government had urged people to stay at home with their families over the New Year’s holidays.
The government is considering changes to a virus control law to empower containment measures. That amendment would allow Japan to penalize bars and restaurants for failing to follow instructions to close early. The change should be approved by parliament, which won’t start until later this month.
– With the help of Sophie Jackman, Max Zimmerman and Kana Nishizawa