Tokyo (AFP)

Critics rain down on the Japanese government, accused of not having taken radical measures in time to stem the spread of the coronavirus on the liner Diamond Princess where the first quarantine period theoretically ends on Wednesday.

The 3,711 people on board this British-flagged vessel were quarantined off Japan on February 5 after the coronavirus was detected on a passenger who had landed in Hong Kong.

On paper, the rules were clear: passengers were confined to the cabins, except for brief trips out on deck, wearing masks and contact avoidance.

But, in addition to several who denounced inappropriate behavior (some chatted without a mask or smoked on deck), doubts quickly arose as to the effectiveness of the measures taken.

In a few days, tests have identified several hundred people carrying the virus. By Tuesday, 542 cases had been reported even though all the results were not known.

- The "fear" of a specialist -

At least two government officials have tested positive for the virus themselves after working on the ship.

The strongest criticism, made in a direct tone extremely rare in Japan in official or university circles, came from a Japanese expert. Kentaro Iwata, professor in the division of infectious diseases at the University of Kobe interviewed by AFP, the quarantine on board the ship is "a major failure, an error" and justifies the "skepticism" of the foreigner .

"I have been to Africa to deal with the Ebola epidemic. I have been to other countries for cholera, to China in 2003 to deal with SARS (...) I have never had fear of being infected myself ", he asserts in a video in English where he says he was" afraid "and describes everything he saw on the boat as" chaotic ".

Japanese officials, however, have defended this approach, including Shigeru Omi, former regional head of the World Health Organization (WHO), who advises the government and says quarantine has "a very positive effect" on reducing infections.

"We believe that the majority of the infections occurred before the date on which the quarantine measures started," he told reporters.

This does not seem to have convinced the governments of the United States, South Korea, Italy, Canada or even Australia who have decided to evacuate their citizens.

Over 300 Americans have been repatriated and more than 200 Canadians are expected to follow shortly.

Nancy Messonier, an official with the United States Center for Disease Control, told reporters that "the data from Japan suggests that there is a higher risk among the people on board the ship."

The blows of reproach placed Japanese officials on the defensive.

- Japan "is not perfect" -

"There was no established international agreement on how to respond and who is responsible or when to land," said Omi, arguing that boats with coronavirus cases have been turned back in many ports.

He added: "No organization is perfect, Japan is no exception."

Health Minister Katsunobu Kato admitted criticism on Tuesday but said the government was focusing on "the health of crew members and passengers".

Identifying when infections may have started on the ship was made more difficult by the slow deployment of tests, with fewer than 300 people initially tested, and the range was only gradually expanded to include groups to risk.

The Japanese government was taken aback, lacking review kits, but waited days for help from the private sector and inviting experts to its crisis meetings.

He did not complete the tests on board for all the passengers until one day before the end of the quarantine.

The government's handling of the crisis appears to have eroded the popularity of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, already affected by yet another patronage scandal.

According to a recent survey, 52% of those polled say they disapprove of the government's response to the epidemic.

hih-sah-kap-uh / phv

© 2020 AFP