Tokyo pub owners both happy and cautious about what comes next
TOKYO — The Japanese government lifted coronavirus restrictions throughout the country on Monday, ending what were officially voluntary limits on business hours that had hit the dining industry hard.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced Thursday that he will raise the daily cap on arrivals from overseas to 7,000 starting March 14 and extend quasi-emergencies in 18 out of the 31 prefectures where the measure is currently in effect.
The Japanese government is nearing a decision to declare a quasi-state of emergency for Tokyo and three nearby prefectures amid a rapid increase in the number of novel coronavirus cases in the region, a government source said Monday.
Despite the number of new COVID-19 cases trending downward nationally, hospital bed occupancy rates in nine prefectures still top 50 percent, making it unsafe to lift the state of emergency there, health experts said on Sept. 16.
The government on Thursday announced a pandemic exit strategy that will ease restrictions on travel, dining and public events for vaccinated people in a bid to reignite the economy, restore public morale and incentivize inoculations.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga’s administration gave its final approval on Sept. 9 for extending the current state of emergency declared over the latest phase of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga announced Wednesday that the country’s state of emergency will be expanded from 13 prefectures to 21, broadening the nation’s strictest measure for a third time as the current coronavirus wave worsens.
What began in late June as a COVID-19 rebound in Tokyo has escalated within weeks into a nationwide surge, forcing the central government to enact the country’s strictest measures in more than a dozen of its largest prefectures.
Nationwide cases of COVID-19 surpassed 10,000 for the first time Thursday as the central government prepared to expand the country’s ongoing state of emergency to Kanagawa, Saitama and Chiba prefectures.
Face à l’augmentation du nombre de cas de Covid-19 dans le pays, le gouvernement a décidé de remettre en place l’état d’urgence et de fermer la grande majorité des épreuves au public. Des décisions qui irritent.
Inquiet de la diffusion du variant Delta, le gouvernement va remettre en place, dès lundi prochain, des restrictions sur les restaurants et les établissements de nuit. Il pourrait revoir encore la baisse le nombre de spectateurs dans les enceintes des JO qui débuteront le 23 juillet.
The Japanese government plans to declare another COVID-19 state of emergency in Tokyo amid a resurgence of infections just over two weeks before the Summer Olympics open in the capital, a senior official with knowledge of the matter said Wednesday.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga announced Thursday the country’s state of emergency will be lifted on Sunday in all but Okinawa Prefecture, as cases continue to decline nationwide and the fourth wave of the pandemic appears to have crested weeks ago.
Satisfait du ralentissement de l’épidémie de Covid-19, Tokyo ne va maintenir que quelques restrictions sur les établissements servant de l’alcool. Le pays se donne encore quelques jours avant de confirmer que les spectateurs seront accueillis, en nombres limités, sur les sites olympiques.
As Japan nears the planned end of its third state of emergency, infectious disease experts warn that a fourth declaration in Tokyo could be right around the corner. A team of scientists led by Hiroshi Nishiura, a member of the health ministry’s expert panel on the virus, projected that a fourth state of emergency in the capital may become necessary in August if the current emergency is lifted on June 20.
