Japan edges towards declaring virus emergency in Tokyo

Tokyo

JAPANESE Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga wants to make a decision as soon as this week on whether to declare a state of emergency in Tokyo, Osaka and other areas, and ramp up restrictions to contain a surge in coronavirus cases just three months before the delayed start of the Olympics.

He told reporters on Wednesday he has received formal requests from Osaka and neighbouring Hyogo prefecture for a declaration. Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike indicated a request will be coming soon from the capital, where infections are spreading and she said the medical system is coming under strain in some areas.

The moves by the leaders of Japan's two biggest and economically important urban areas have put pressure on Mr Suga to move quickly. Local media reports indicate Kyoto prefecture was planning to request an emergency declaration.

Tokyo is looking to have a state of emergency in place from April 29 till May 9, to coincide with a string of public holidays known as "Golden Week", the Mainichi newspaper reported on Wednesday, citing an unnamed political official. The move could step up current virus restrictions by having department stores close, it said. The Yomiuri newspaper reported that entertainment facilities including karaoke parlours could also face temporary closure.

Covid-19 cases in the capital have jumped in recent days, with the daily total hitting 843 on Wednesday. It is the highest since late January, when Tokyo was under its second state of emergency.

"I would like to work with local governments and examine the contents of their requests, and then make a decision as soon as this week," Mr Suga said. In previous situations, he sought the advice of experts and then made a formal announcement.

While he had pledged efforts to avoid reintroducing a state of emergency, surveys show public support to implement the measure.

But tighter restrictions on activity could delay the economy's recovery, dealing a heavy blow to struggling businesses and further testing the resolve of policy-makers and Olympic organisers to press ahead with the Summer Games, set to start in July after a one-year delay.

The surge comes as Japan is only a month into vaccinating its general public, with shots for those over 65. It has administered two million doses to its 126 million-strong population and the government's vaccine czar, Taro Kono, said the country is looking to finish its programme by February 2022. Mr Suga's government already tightened some restrictions earlier this month in Tokyo, Osaka and other regions to slow the spread, imposing measures that call on bars and restaurants to close by 8 pm, and fining those that fail to comply.

Under the current measures, commuter trains are running packed, and crowds are flocking to stores and restaurants. Civil liberties enshrined in Japan's constitution prohibit a lockdown backed by police action.

Mr Suga, who has touted the Olympics, scheduled to start July 23, as an opportunity to prove that the world has defeated the virus, reiterated the government's stance that the games will proceed as scheduled despite a possible state of emergency.

"There will be no impact on the Olympics," he told reporters earlier. "The government will do its best to host the games in safety."

The mounting virus cases have prompted the prime minister to cancel visits to India and the Philippines planned from late April to early May, Kyodo News reported, citing unnamed government sources.

There is no law that prohibits the Olympics from taking place under an emergency, but it will likely impact the number of domestic spectators allowed. Overseas fans are already banned from the event.

The virus surge has further soured Japanese public support for the Olympics, which would be one of the biggest global events of the pandemic era. More than 70 per cent of those surveyed by broadcaster ANN over the weekend said they were against holding the games, which are expected to draw more than 60,000 athletes, coaches, national team staff, journalists and other essential workers from more than 200 countries, as scheduled.

Despite the rising numbers in Japan, the country has by far the fewest recorded Covid-19 cases of any G7 country. Its death toll has also been among the lowest in the group at about 9,650, well below the 128,000 in the United Kingdom, which has a population about half the size of Japan's. BLOOMBERG