Japan may ease emergency

Japan’s government is holding a coronavirus task force meeting Thursday to get experts’ approval on a plan to lift a state of emergency in most areas except Tokyo and other high-risk areas ahead of schedule.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe declared the emergency on April 7 in Tokyo and six other urban prefectures and later expanded it to the whole country through May 31. With signs of infections slowing, Abe is seeking to relax the measure while balancing disease prevention and the economy.

His government plans to lift the state of emergency in 39 of the country’s 47 prefectures, while maintaining it in eight prefectures, including Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto and Hokkaido.

Japan has more than 16,000 confirmed cases of infection, with about 680 deaths from COVID-19. The number of new cases being reported daily has significantly decreased.

Abe will explain details of changing the emergency status at a news conference later Thursday.

Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura, in his opening remarks at the task force meeting, asked experts to give details on how the emergency would be eased, as well as how it might be tightened if cases resurge.

Experts and officials have urged people to adopt “new lifestyles” and continue practicing physical distancing measures such as remote-working and avoid out-of-town trips even after the state of emergency is lifted.



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