The The Japanese government is ready to end its coronavirus state of emergency in five prefectures on Friday, a week earlier than scheduled, following a dramatic drop in new cases across the country.
Emergency measures, including requests for pubs and restaurants at 8pm, are expected to be lifted in Osaka, Kyoto, Hyogo, Aichi and Gifu prefectures, the Kyodo news agency quoted government sources as saying. But they will stay in Tokyo and the neighboring prefectures of Kanagawa, Saitama and Chiba.
Officials will make a decision on Fukuoka’s possible emergency exit after examining the availability of hospital beds in the southwestern prefecture, Kyodo said.
The state of emergency – the second in Japan since the start of the pandemic – began on January 7 in 11 of the country’s 47 provinces and was extended by another month until March 7. Tochigi, north of Tokyo, has already been withdrawn.
Although the Japanese authorities do not have the legal powers to impose restrictions on businesses or individuals, it appears that the requests to shorten hours and avoid unnecessary outings are bearing fruit. Companies are encouraged to take work remotely, and attendance at major events, such as concerts and sports events, is limited to 5,000.
Japan recorded 1,065 new Covid-19 cases on Thursday, according to public broadcaster NHK, well below the daily high of nearly 8,000 on January 8. Seventy-four deaths were attributed to the virus on the same day, below a peak of 121 in early February.
The government hopes to lift the state of emergency in the remaining four prefectures as planned on March 7, NHK added.
Health experts have said lifting most restrictions should not be seen as a sign that life is back to normal. “There is a danger that it could send the wrong message that everything is right now,” Toshio Nakagawa, head of the Japanese Medical Association, said on Thursday.