Abe again urges people to stay home to stop virus spreading

I have seen a photo of a street seller fallen to the ground in China. That could have been me or anyone who would need to support family. Without financial support, people would go to work to support their family despite Abe's plea. The government would need to do much more than sending out 2 masks to every family.

Has Abe been on the Yamanote line....ever?

Social distancing in Tokyo is impossible.

A supplementary budget had detailed payouts of 300,000 yen to households with incomes hit by the outbreak, but pressure mounted on Abe, some from within his own party, to step up the help with a payment of 100,000 yen for all citizens.

Theres more to the pressure. On 4/15, Komeito reportedly threatened to end its 20-year partnership w/ the LDP if Prime Minister Abe did not make major concessions. 

That is leverage.

Wow only a month ago he was still pushing for the Olympics to go ahead. Shows how little he know's, cares or is just really ignorant.

Abe doesn’t have an original idea in his head nor understanding of the life of an ordinary Japanese citizen.

There are some Japanese people are at the brink and wonder how they can survive this month!

Social distancing is not gonna flattering the wave in Japan, this is the second wave, the early wave was in January, when lots of people travel from China, this will be a more deadly wave into the summer

Tell your Akie first. Then maybe we'll use that as an example.

For a country like Japan that is overcrowded with people especially in the major cities, and rely on public transportation, ain't no way social distancing is going to work. Certainly many people have abide by social distancing etiquette as seen by pictures of relatively empty Tokyo streets, but that isn't going to be all the time.

Abe should be urging institutions to implement two meter distancing guidelines instead of the one meter distancing guidelines because the experts say two meters.

Japan: Playing catch up and still getting it incorrect despite having ample examples to follow.

Theres more to the pressure. On 4/15, Komeito reportedly threatened to end its 20-year partnership w/ the LDP if Prime Minister Abe did not make major concessions. 

What was even more telling is that Abe apologized to the people of this country at the same time as well.

When is the last time anyone has heard Abe apologize for anything here? His base is starting to show cracks!

This is a no win situation though. The choice is:

Try to survive by risking going to work if you can’t telework or are fortunate to have that choice

Social distance on the streets if you’re unfortunately laid off and get evicted

These calls are coming very late in Japan, and of course they aren't as strong as in nearly all the other countries.

The delay and weak response may prolong the Covid effects, even to the point where the Tokyo Olympics will have to be cancelled once and for all. In that case, Abe would have only himself to blame.

It’s staggering that this message is only coming now. Everybody should’ve been staying at home at least 4 weeks ago.

The reason people aren’t is simple. First, the government has provided no absolute support to small businesses or individual citizens - so people have no choice but to keep going to work.

Secondly, the government messaging on this has hardly looked like an emergency despite declaring a ‘state of emergency’. If you only close izakayas after 8pm, and request that people don’t go to karaoke etc. then people are still going to go out in the daytime, and go to department stores, and use the trains etc.

Its been a complete shambles, and people have died and will continue to die because of the way the government has acted.

the Japanese constitution doesn't not allow for an enforced lockdown we all know that.

Without a fundamental change to the constitution it won't happen and only loose guidelines and 'onegais' can be given.

HBJ:

The two points you raised are exactly right. All I hear is urge, request ask, blah blah blah. Nothing will change unless you force changes, fine people for breaking rules, and also set an example yourself instead of letting your wife run amok. Clueless.

Hong Kong is just as crowded as Tokyo, and received many many tourists from mainland China, just across the border. And yet, they have only had about 1,000 cases (the vast majority being recent returnees from Europe and America) and only 4 deaths. Testing is rigorous, those arriving at the airports are made sure they're self-isolating by tagging with tracking wristbands, they've stopped non-residents from coming at the moment. People have also be fined for flouting rules. And everyone now has access to masks. Yes, HK is smaller, but if at least some of these measures were taken in Japan, especially Tokyo, I don't think we'd be see as many cases as we're seeing now. The Japanese tend to think of foreign diseases as just that - foreign. That just wearing masks alone is sufficient. That there is no need to practise social distancing. That turning away only foreigners from shops is enough.

I'd like to say that this is the straw that breaks the camel's back and gets Abe to resign, but judging from past events, nothing will happen to him.

I’m so tired of this guy.

With minimal and entirely inadequate testing for COVID19 in Japan, there is no way known that there are only 201 new cases in Tokyo yesterday.

No way.

The number could be 3-4 times that, or more, Those with mild symptoms confusing/hoping that they have something else so continuing to move about, go to work, ride the trains etc are only spreading.

Japan is getting this really wrong.

Might I add, in some countires, they were already using software like Zoom to have on-line lessons at universities, and most probably schools at the start of this year. At that time, most people in Japan had probably never even heard of Zoom. And I know that in some Japanese universities, people were asking 'what is Zoom' as late as in March. Hell, it didn't even occur to people to have online lectures until the past few weeks.

With minimal and entirely inadequate testing for COVID19 in Japan, there is no way known that there are only 201 new cases in Tokyo yesterday. 

No way. 

The number could be 3-4 times that, or more, Those with mild symptoms confusing/hoping that they have something else so continuing to move about, go to work, ride the trains etc are only spreading.

Japan is getting this really wrong.

You are 100% correct.

This advice or recommendation is not working. The JASDF neighbor and his wife go camping every weekend, and guess what this was no different. Every Friday he gets home, packs up and they takes off back on Sunday. So if a member of the Self Defense Forces doesn't listen why should anyone (ref article: Abe asked all citizens to stay home to save lives as infections surge in the nation's capital."). This guy is an aircraft trainer for JASDF.

Another gaijen neighbor is packing and moving themselves typical US process, so no this order isn't working without any penalties against it. Just empty words that sound good and read will when posted.

@Tamarama

With minimal and entirely inadequate testing for COVID19 in Japan, there is no way known that there are only 201 new cases in Tokyo yesterday.

I agree with you. Singapore, which had the virus in seemingly in check has seen a recent upswing. Singapore reported 728 cases on Thursday (I have not seen Friday numbers yet). The Tokyo mass transit system is much more crowded than the Singapore MRT and the population of the Tokyo Metro area is twice that of Singapore.

I find it nearly impossible to believe the numbers.

I was in Singapore for work in February and they were taking extensive measures at that time while Tokyo, in Abe and Koike's attempt to save the Olympics, was doing nothing.

Pukey 2 I have been using Zoom in my company for 2-3 months now.

Not everyone is stuck in the stone age please stop generalising.

Perhaps Abe does not have the powers that exist in other countries, but he could still lead by example. Not having crowded press conferences and keeping his wife away from the stealth hanami parties for a start. You cannot expect the most dim and/or selfish people out there to take it seriously if our leaders are not.

The Japanese provinces are still mostly free of coronavirus and are testing in keeping with WHO guidelines (finding one positive for every ten negatives is enough testing). The problem is the six or seven most affected prefectures, starting of course with Tokyo. This is not a criticism, any contagious disease will spread faster where people are concentrated. My point is that if the urban centers mess up, the disease will spread across the country, including communities where everyone is over 65 and the nearest general hospital is 50km away.

There must be more testing in the cities and people must to be told to stay at home. No ifs, no buts, stay at home. It doesn't matter if its hanami or Golden Week, some company internal document needs a hanko, or you always go for raamen on Sunday, stay at home. Let's not pretend closing schools in the countryside will stop this. It will not.

My city has only tested 58 people total, so we have no idea what the real situation is. We all still have to go to work because there's not enough government support. Just open the windows. .ー.

It is impossible to stay home as long as companies force the people to go to work, even Telework is possible.

Quit your job, than you can stay home.

Things are easy to say, but to implement them in the real life is very difficult. Impossible!

Not saying everyone is doing this but there is an exodus of people to their hometowns or second homes to avoid the plagued Capital (Shizuoka, Nagano, Yamanashi, and Gifu of my friends.) This return to the countryside or to the grandparents’ 帰省 is going to stir things around. The call to stay put during Golden Week seems like a rare case of the Abe admin preparing ahead but is actually yet another passive reaction to what is already happening as seen by the number of Tokyo license plates in supermarket parking lots in Karuizawa per news.

Abe still stumbling, bumbling and now crumbling. Payments in May, does he not understand people are out of work for weeks in some case now which means no income and this govt baffoon thinks a mere 100,000yen will be fine in May ?

Very out of touch with reality like most politicicans around the world, must be hard to see what is actually happening when their heads are stuffed so far up their own A___s.

well said Bjorn!

perfectly said.

Pretty please with 2 masks on top...like as if that ever works

Last week’s response to Abe’s video and its strong language suggest disapproval. Usually the Mrs is off limits but they keep trying to find something on Akie violating the social distancing call.

It’s definitely positive that this can be traced from normal people to Soka to Komeito to the Prime Minister’s Residence and finally to the LDP.

Yamaguchi arm wrestling Abe reminds me of a chef who said the best time to negotiate is the week before a Saturday lunch wedding reception.

Discussions to include foreigners for the ¥100,000 apparently was or is being held.

A good browse on a rainy Saturday:

Electoral incentives, policy compromise, and coalition durability: Japan's LDP–Komeito Government in a mixed electoral system | Japanese Journal of Political Science | Cambridge Core

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/japanese-journal-of-political-science/article/electoral-incentives-policy-compromise-and-coalition-durability-japans-ldpkomeito-government-in-a-mixed-electoral-system/D153792B61853FAC9AF38A20E5076D32

Saving lives is more important than 2020 Olympic..if only he acted swiftly last month.

Abe is now visibly worried. Perhaps he has finally realised what is about to happen in Japan after all this wasted time when Japan could have got ready. He keeps saying please have 80% less contacts. But it is not happening. This is his out. When things get bad he will just say well people didn't take the request so it is not his fault and the Japanese people will for elect him as usual.

And as for GW this is going to compound the problem in Japan massively and he also actually realises this but all he can say is please don't travel in GW. Unfortunately many people don't even hear his plea and will travel to their hometown to spread the disease from the big city and others will travel into the big cities to get the disease to take back to their homes later. Freedom t spread the disease that it was is important in Japan.

dan lavender:

Pukey 2 I have been using Zoom in my company for 2-3 months now.

Not everyone is stuck in the stone age please stop generalising.

Did I say everyone? Please read properly before generalising.

South Korea did it right, they got aggressive early on, to the point they even have drive through testing. You practically have to be half dead to get a test here in Japan, they want to do it the Japanese way. I saw young people in my town partying it up on Instagram live last night, I guess this will never hit home until someone they personally know dies of it, which is right around the corner and will be too late. That's how exponential numbers work - by the it explodes, it's too late to do much about it.

the Japanese constitution doesn't not allow for an enforced lockdown we all know that.

The steps are massive testing, contact tracing, isolation and quarantine. All which can happen without a massive lockdown. abe and his equally incompetent regime is to blame for this. .

Abe’s strategy is suppress testing, report low numbers, and go on media saying sugoi-zo nippon. He is doubling down on this as Japanese media is already reporting more plans to enforce stricter testing criteria

With so few cases being reported, it is hard to imagine most Japanese people taking it seriously.

Also up to last week, MHLW’s japanese Q&A says the virus cannot be spread through asymptomatic people or through the air

Same spraf different day but the numbers keep on rising!!!

Social distancing, including staying home, works.