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© Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.33 prefectures now under state of emergency as virus surges
By MARI YAMAGUCHI TOKYO©2025 GPlusMedia Inc.
42 Comments
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ShotenGuy
State of emergency...hmmm. Yup, I can see my local station from my window and it's crowded as normal. Corona taikai!
oldman_13
The world needs to admit that it is too late for these extreme measures. The virus is beyond control at this point and any measures taken to try and contain it only creates more problems.
indigo
obstruction to freedom is illegal. Suga is responsible of this mess to allow useless and unwanted Olympic games
Fuzzy
This should be the priority right now. Close monitoring and early treatment can do a lot to preventing people from becoming severe. The number of people left to fend for themselves at home is unacceptable.
Sam Watters
Omi is a fool if he wants to give the Japanese government more power. Of course, I think this might have been power. Of course, maybe this was the plan from the start.
thepersoniamnow
Correction
Rising cases and companies not doing Tele-work and lowering rush hour commutes…no this is not “due to complacency” (blaming citizens).
It is due to that the government has not been able to adapt and come up with a strategy. They prioritized other things.
There has never been any working from home except during the lockdown in Spring. Besides that, I have simply gone into work 30 min later to avoid packed Osaka trains.
David Brent
"State of emergency" in my prefecture means : go to work as normal, use public transport as normal, go shopping as normal....I don't understand why the word "emergency" is used in this context.
Dirk
Last year this time, goto travel campaign, no jab.
Now, SOE in most prefectures, half the population jabbed.
Works great!
browny1
Watched that press conference live last night.
Suga's cold fish delivery, effectively repeating what already has been said, was mind-numbing.
Reading everything - including prepared answers to most questions - really had one thinking is this the leader of one of the most advanced nations on earth?
Waffling on about the reason we are behind in vaccinations because we had to trial the new vaccines to ensure they were safe for Japanese people was script for the course.
Someone in the press should have challenged him on that in question time - but then that wouldn't have been allowed.
Whole thing is a shambles and symptomatic of the ldp's ailments affecting all of society.
Sadly come voting time in 2 months a majority of citizens won't recognize this.
I hope I'm wrong.
El Rata
No bro! I will not cooperate, the same way the government did not cooperate in canceling the Olympics.
Nator
I am still confused what I am not meant to do. It is all a farce.
The reality is they hoped masks would somehow work and they did not. If you look at the masks people are wearing especially those 10 to 20 year olds. Its just a bit of cloth that has not seen a washing machine for a long time. The fact that people constantly touch them and then rub their eyes or remove them at every opportunity has meant that without the other measures of social disatancing, washing hands, not standing close to each other and talking. Not sitting in a room with bad circulation all day. This virus goes along happy in the knowledge that the gov nudges failed dismally.
It is however interesting that Tokyo numbers are going down and I hope that is a trend rather than a manipulation. If it is a trend then I hope some clever people are trying to work out why that is. I do not think that the vaccine roll out will be very successful compared to other countries and although the vaccine reduces the spread and prevents people getting seriously ill it does not stop the virus. I think the numbers for the new variant make it 60% effective.
So 40% of vaccinated are just as bad off as those unvacinated but might feel that they are immune just like the masks. That is a bad message to put out.
I am very glad I had a mis-spent youth and plenty of memories because the future looks very very bleak. However who knows Suga and his whole party might not survive. A whole new bunch of old men can take over and do effectively the same bad job and just maybe the people of Japan will rise up and decide that democracy is a failed system. I can but dream.
William77
And here we go again with the propaganda that can be sold only in Japan.
First with such complacent mindset the press is also contributing in keep the mass less responsible and aware of the danger of the virus.
And then this is pure propaganda,for example Germany and Italy that have almost half of the population of Japan did and are doing way more tests and of course it results in more cases.
Sick of this LDP propaganda.
chotto_2
What is it that you people do not get? Masks don't 'prevent' the virus, they *reduce the viral loads**.* You, having a vaccine and wearing a mask, reduces YOUR chances of being hospitalised, and reduces that of other people being hospitalised. It's not 'your right' to not wear a mask and put other people at risk.
Newgirlintown
The government need to tell people to keep their noses in their masks too. The amount of guys I see with their shnozes sticking over the top as if the virus doesn’t live their is ridiculous.
Mark
Life goes on and will go on.
Nator
@chotto
Maybe you can provide a link to viral load reduction from a cloth mask.
And another link to viral load reduction from badly fitted masks.
And finally a link to viral load reduction from mis-use (i.e. constant touching) of masks.
I do understand viral load and the harshness of a virus. I was trying to point out that in reality people where a mask and immediately think they are safe and therefore increase the amount of other behaviours which increase viral load. Spending long hours in a badly ventilated room is considerably worse for viral load than spending five minutes in a supermarket without a mask.
As for putting other people in danger I think you should be a tad more careful about accusing people. As to my knowledge I have not put anyone else in danger and I have reduced the bubble of people considerably over the last couple of years and seldom travel on trains of visit crowded places. I wear a mask when it is right to do so but not in situations where a mask is pointless. I also wear a proper mask and dispose of it properly.
Finally I think the IOC are massively to blame for what is happening now in Japan and I even put in a formal complaint about Lord Coe before the Olympics for failing the standards of a Lord. If only others had done the same it might have forced the issue a bit more.
hmmm1
SOE but the government wants your kids to attend the Olympics to give a good overseas image to the IOC and JOC. Hmmm
crowbag
how to say you don't want a national lockdown without saying it
browny1
Many cases of research affirming masks reduce viral loads, hence reducing severity of infections.
https://medium.com/microbial-instincts/why-masks-protect-its-wearer-too-the-viral-load-concept-2fd1ff88ed6a
Of course mask material, fitting & habits greatly influence the efficacy.
From the link below :
"The current research results have shown that COVID‐19 is mainly transmitted via droplets in the air. There is a potential risk of airborne transmission in an indoor environment with poor ventilation. The distance of droplet transmission can extend up to 4 m. Based on this data, the recommended social distancing range of 1–2 m (CDC, 2020; WHO, 2020) may not necessarily guarantee the epidemic prevention. Therefore, wearing mask in public is essential as its effectiveness has already been well established by the current studies....."
How effective is a mask in preventing COVID‐19 infection? (nih.gov)
goldeneagle
What emergency?
dan
Stay home ! Keep your masks on!
Don't go drinking!
bug we will hold the Olympics and paraolympics !
Double standards Suga Sama!!
dan
but we that should read
justasking
Everybody knows how to protect people's lives at this point, Mr. PM. Only you don't.
OMG. Can he say something everyone doesn't know already? Like what are his ACTUAL plans???
clown world
Is this what we pay for with the skyrocketing health insurance bills this year? Who are the experts? Municipality workers who only care about their paychecks, never about their citizens...
Brian Wheway
Here is a link from 14 hours ago on YouTube, its a walk aroun Shibuya https://youtu.be/8-ctzU_wL1E it really looks like the public are really adhering to the state of emergencies ....https://youtu.be/Y4pReWr3sSQ
in both of the vid clips its comes across as very relaxed and lots of people going about there daily lives. it looks like business as normal.
tamanegi
"Japan has weathered the pandemic better than many other countries, with around 15,600 deaths nationwide since the start"
Phew! That must be a great comfort to the relatives and friends of the deceased.
kurisupisu
Suga the slow….
In the UK well over 80% have been double dosed!
Why is Japan so inefficient?
Hervé L'Eisa
People have pan-demic fatigue. How about making effective treatments readily available (politically incorrect) instead of resorting to further restrictions?
knittyelf
@Foreigner in Tokyo
Japan only gave out ¥100,000.
Paul
People also forget that it is possible to catch CORONA through you eyes. That is why face shields and googles are used by medical staff. If one intends to spend a long time in close proximity to others, a mask is not enough!!! Therefore all those commuters in a rush hour trains should also be wearing googles, alas that is not going to happen!