New COVID-19 Cases Soar, Japan Implements Emergency Situation Next Month

Illustration (Chris Yang / Unsplash)

JAKARTA - The Japanese government will impose a state of emergency for one month in Tokyo and three surrounding prefectures. This relates to the signing of a state of emergency declaration by the Advisory Panel on Thursday 7 January.

Launching Reuters Thursday January 7, the state of emergency will be carried out for a month from January 8 to February 7. This policy was carried out after a spike in corona virus cases which reached a record 2,447 new cases.

"The proposal for an emergency declaration was approved at a meeting this morning. The restrictions center on measures to combat contagion in bars and restaurants, as the main areas of risk," said Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura.

The plan is for Prime Minister Yoshihide Suda to provide an official statement regarding the imposition of a state of emergency in Tokyo, Saitama Prefecture, Kanagawa Prefecture and Chiba Prefecture.

In addition, government officials have held discussions with experts this week to take steps to control the spike in coronavirus cases with minimal impact on the economy.

The measures taken include restaurants and bars closing at 8pm local time, restrictions on community movement, restrictions on sporting events and other major events, and postponing the Olympic torch exhibition.

To note, according to simulation by Kyoto University scientist, Hiroshi Nishiura, daily infections in Tokyo could reach 3,500 per day in February and reach 7,000 in March without proper treatment measures.