Request for suspension of business Underwater defense What happens between Tokyo and the country ... 12:19 on April 16

"Can I go for a haircut?"
"Can I have a drinking party at an izakaya?"
Governor Koike of Tokyo quickly started to consider the request for leave after receiving the declaration of emergency. However, the target of the request was not shown on the 7th when the declaration was issued, and it was made public on the 10th.
What happened during this time? Looking back on the "offensive and defense" of the capital and the country for a week.
(Ryo Naruzawa)

Target of unusual leave request

In response to the national "Emergency Declaration", the Tokyo Metropolitan Government issued a "leave request".
First, let's see the difference between the original plan and the final version on the 10th.

The category of "basically requesting suspension" was changed, and barbershops that originally requested suspension of business were excluded from the target.

In addition, except for sales areas for daily necessities such as food and pharmaceuticals, department stores, markets, shopping malls, home centers were also requested to close, but the definitive version does not specify specific industries and facilities, It is said that stores other than those that sell essential items will be closed, and home improvement centers can now be opened.

Initially, the izakaya had a policy of requesting a leave, but as a result of discussions with the government, it will not request a leave, and the business hours will be from 5 am to 8 pm, and liquor will be served until 7 pm is what happened.

Various confusions occurred in various parts of Tokyo during the "blank period" from the initial draft to the publication of the final version.
Even the manager of a familiar barbershop I go to is anxious, "For the time being, I will shorten the business hours for a few days to see the situation. The only thing I can do is watch the announcement of Governor Koike and Prime Minister Abe ...". Was heard.

Inquiries such as "is my store eligible?", After being announced, flooded the call centers in the capital. The capital hurriedly posted a detailed list of specific industries and facilities that requested closure on its website.

(Click here for a summary of requests for leave for 7 prefectures including Tokyo)

What happened between April 6th (Mon) and 10th (Fri)?

Secretly prepared plan

Monday, April 6
"Abe's" Emergency Declaration "Final Adjustments for Tomorrow"
"Prime Minister declares emergency"
Koike was in the closing room of the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly this afternoon when the media companies reported all together.

Prior to issuing the declaration the next day, he explained to the representatives of each parliamentary group of the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly the details of the measure to be implemented under the authority of the Governor of Tokyo = "Tokyo Metropolitan Emergency Measures".

Koike was worried about the rapid increase in the number of infected people in Tokyo. In the NHK program that appeared on the 5th of the previous day,
"Isn't a national decision now required?"
"I would like to ask for legal support as a nation."
He urged Abe to declare an emergency.

If a declaration is issued, it is possible to request and instruct the citizens and businesses to refrain from going out and doing business, taking a step further from the "request base" that was supported by the law.

Koike explained to the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly the secretly warming "Tokyo emergency measures (draft)".

In response to the explanation to the metropolitan assembly, each company reported the contents of the city's plan all at once, and the situation was in fact announced.
The reporters in charge of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government were preparing, saying, "We are just waiting for the" official "announcement at the press conference of the governor."

Press conference that does not start

However, the press conference is not set at all.

The initial assumption was 5 pm. It changed over and over, and finally it started at 9:30 pm.

So we were even more surprised.
This is because the specific industries and facilities that were subject to the leave request, which was scheduled to be announced, were not shown because it was "in coordination with the government."

Something unexpected has happened--

After the press conference was over, information was received from executives in the city.
"There are opinions from the national government that they are too strict, so I want them to loosen their targets," he said.

The country "waited"

The next 7 days.
In the Diet, the Steering Committee of the House of Representatives has been held since noon.
Abe, who was attending the committee with Abe, was Minister of Economic Rehabilitation Nishimura in charge of the Act on Special Measures against New Coronavirus. The answer provided the answer to the question he had on the previous day.

“Beauty salons and home improvement centers are businesses that are necessary for us to have a stable people's life, and we are thinking that we can continue to do business. Barbers who are small and familiar I don't think about rooms being subject to usage restrictions, nor about home improvement. ”

He directly denied the reported initial plan of the city.

8 pm
Abe's press conference on the issuance of the declaration was still ongoing. Meanwhile, Koike held a press conference.

However, what was shown there was only a request for a thorough refraining from going out. Subsequent to the day before, no specific industry or facility requesting a leave was announced.

Koike et al. Repeated, "Coordinating with the country." The only thing that was announced about the leave request was the schedule.

"I would like to have a plan as the capital by April 9th, and take into account the effect of refraining from going out, and I would like to proceed with a schedule of announcement on 10th and implementation on 11th."

It was a moment when the city abandoned its original schedule of requesting a leave as soon as the declaration was issued.
In fact, at this time, the city had already been hit by the country with "something" that was difficult to resist.

The “trigger” of offense and defense is

It was the country's "basic coping policy."
The “Basic Response Policy” is formulated by the “Government Countermeasures Headquarters” based on the Act on Special Measures. It is supposed to include important matters regarding implementation of measures.

The government announced the “revised version” of the “basic coping policy” that had been announced so far, in line with the “Emergency Situation Declaration” on the 7th.
The new description added to this "revised version" triggered the defense of the city and the country.

One is that "when requesting leave, the prefecture will consult with the government to determine the effect of the request to refrain from going out."
Instead of requesting leave immediately after the declaration is issued, be sure to obtain the understanding of the country when requesting leave after assessing the effects of going out.

The period of time to determine the effect of going out is generally two weeks. It was a content that could not promptly request leave.

The second was the request for the continuation of business from home improvement centers, barber shops, etc., which the city considered to be requesting leave.

Both are the exact opposite of what Tokyo was trying to do.

Among the government officials, regarding “hairdressing” that calls for business continuity in the “basic coping policy”, the original plan of Tokyo says that there is no description of “hairdresser” although there is description of “barber shop”. It was pointed out that the confusion was spurred.

"The content of the" revised version "issued after the capital plan is the national message that" the capital will not run away. "

That's what the executives of the city took.

Governor of other prefectures, out of sync

Next morning on the 8th.
A video conference was held with Nishimura and the Governor of seven prefectures who were the subject of the "Emergency Declaration".
The remarks made by the attendees at this conference further struck Koike.

Governor of Kuroiwa, Kanagawa Prefecture "Governor Koike says that it is ineffective if it is not done at the same time as a request for self-restraint to go out, but what happens if the limit is imposed without compensation measures? I said that I will issue" cooperation money " It seems that we have a different financial scale from Tokyo, so we can't keep up with it. ''

Other than Kuroiwa, there were a number of statements saying, "When making a leave request, you cannot avoid the problem of compensation."

From the administration center

According to a person concerned, Koike was also called directly from the administration center this afternoon.

"I want you to wait two weeks before announcing the target of a leave request. Today, 90% of shops are closed in downtown downtown."

The Tokyo executive murmured.

"The store is closed because the city's plan was leaked to the world through the media. Even though Koike announced the announcement on April 10th at a press conference," waiting for two weeks "is also the basis. It's not clear, and it's too late if the infection continues to spread after two weeks. "

Within the government, Koike suddenly issued a declaration of emergency and requested a leave of absence, saying that the strong word "lockdown" = "blockade of the city" caused excessive insecurity to the citizens and the people. I heard that there was a fear that a panic could occur. In addition to suppressing damage to economic activities, the country also had a desire to have time to set up a medical system that could handle severely ill patients.

Later that night, Koike directly contacted Nishimura, but no agreement was reached.

Time limit

April 9th, which Koike positioned as a time limit for "getting a plan".

Even in the evening, I haven't heard the "Agreement". The time was around 8 pm.

Koike quickly left the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building without responding to media calls. I headed to the Central Joint Government Building No. 8 near the Diet and the Minister's Office in Nishimura.

At this time, Koike was hungry.

"If the country does not make concessions, regardless of the Act on Special Measures, the Metropolitan Government will call on business operators to cooperate in the suspension of business."

I didn't feel like going over the week.

Koike emphasized the agreement with the country after a meeting that took place for nearly an hour from 8:30 pm.

"I was able to share a sense of crisis. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government will give details and announce the emergency measures based on today's consultations based on Article 24, Paragraph 9 of the Special Measures Law."

Last-minute settlement

The liver was "Article 24 Paragraph 9".

[Article 24, Paragraph 9 of the Special Measures Act]
When the Director of the Prefectural Measures Headquarters finds it necessary to implement measures for the area of ​​the prefecture concerned in an appropriate and prompt manner, he / she will cooperate with the public or private organization or individual in cooperating with the implementation of measures concerning the area. Can be requested. (Excerpt)

This article refers to the "request for cooperation for leave" that can be performed by the governor's authority. It can be issued without a national emergency declaration.

The “Request for Leave of Absence” that requires coordination with the government is stipulated in Article 45 of the Act on Special Measures.

[Article 45, Paragraph 2 of the Special Measures Act]
In the event of an emergency, the prefectural governor, if he / she finds it necessary, restricts or suspends the use of schools, social welfare facilities, entertainment venues, and other facilities used by a large number of persons specified by a Cabinet Order, and other measures specified by a Cabinet Order. You can request that you take the (Excerpt)

Based on Article 45, when actually making a "request", it is possible to specify the manager of each facility, and if the manager of the facility does not respond, the "instruction" which is a stronger measure it can. Although there are no penalties in the "instructions", it is believed that they have a de facto compulsory force because the name of the business operator is announced.

Whether it was a "request for cooperation for leave of absence" or "request for leave of absence", Koike was more particular about the disclosure of the subject than the text of the law.

We also settled on the subject of the request, which had split opinions.

Regarding the request to the Internet cafe, which was worried that "people who stayed overnight would lose their place of departure," Miyako got the understanding of the country in exchange for providing business hotels free of charge.

Regarding requests to restaurants such as izakaya, we shared the importance of measures against the nightlife downtown in Tokyo, where many people were infected, and although we did not ask for holidays, we made a concession that it was unavoidable to shorten business hours. .

However, criticism of Koike is still smoldering among government officials even after the settlement.
“If it was a“ request for cooperation in leave ”according to“ Article 24, Paragraph 9 ”, it would have been possible for the city to make its own actions when the Act on Special Measures was enacted, without waiting for the declaration of an emergency.”

From "President" to "Middle Manager"

Koike's regular press conference at 2:00 pm on the 10th.
As planned, Koike announced the target of cooperation request for leave. At the same time, I did not forget to criticize the country in a unique way.

`` The authority to decide measures according to the characteristics of the region was given to each prefectural governor, and when I thought that I was the president, I heard various heavenly voices and seemed to be a middle manager. It was like that. ''

After that, the governors of the other six prefectures also announced the idea of ​​requesting "leave of absence" one after another.

The city has created an "infection spread prevention cooperation fund" that will be provided to small and medium-sized enterprises and sole proprietors in Tokyo who will fully cooperate with requests such as leave, depending on the number of stores, etc. I will pay 10,000 yen.
While the city cannot compensate for losses due to leave, it aims to create an environment in which businesses can easily respond to the request of the city through cooperation money, and want to enhance the effect of the request while also obtaining cooperation from small and medium-sized enterprises. I am trying.

Some prefectures that are the target of declarations other than the Tokyo metropolitan government say that it is difficult to deal with them in the same way as the Tokyo metropolitan government due to difficult financial circumstances. There are also places to launch.

On the other hand, within the government, such as "How do you know if you are on leave?" "What if you would compensate one business, what would you do with the loss of that business?" Some point out that it is doubtful whether the system of cooperation money can be operated without confusion.

The government has a policy to support small and medium-sized enterprises whose management has declined through employment adjustment subsidies, benefits, and grants, and how far they can get an understanding of the leave request is a future issue.

What really works is ...

Committee of the House of Representatives on the 13th.
Nishimura, who was criticized by opposition lawmakers, said, "In crisis management, it is basically necessary to put a large net in the first place to implement strict measures, and the sequential injection of force is the cause of failure."

"This law involves the restriction of private rights, and the measures that must be taken must be the minimum necessary. It is unacceptable to broaden the network beyond the provisions of the law and exceed the necessary measures. Nothing

Koike is the emergency response headquarters of the National Governors' Association on the 8th,
"This time it's a battle with invisible enemies unlike a disaster. Tokyo has a large population and infected patients differ from those in other regions by an order of magnitude. We want to respond to the characteristics of each region," he said.

The first "Emergency Declaration" period is until May 6th.
It is difficult to predict what was effective in preventing the spread of infection, but I would like to continue to verify it.
(Honorific title omitted)

Metropolitan area center reporter Ryo Naruzawa
Entered in 2004. He has been in charge of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government since 2018 after working at the Kobe Bureau and the Politics Department. My hobbies are playing baseball, watching sports, and losing weight.