Covid-19: three months before the Olympics, Japan declares a new state of emergency

Japanese people in the Osaka metro (illustrative image).

AP - Hiro Komae

Text by: RFI Follow

3 min

Faced with a fourth wave of coronavirus, Japan declared a new state of emergency in its main urban centers (Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto) by imposing stricter measures than the previous ones.

A sharp increase in contamination with new variants of Covid-19 calls into question the holding of the Tokyo Olympics less than a hundred days before their opening. 

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With our correspondent in Tokyo,

Frédéric Charles

Tokyo and Osaka record more than 2,000 new contaminations every day, with the appearance of new, more dangerous variants.

But the government of Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga repeats that there is no question of giving up its commitment to organize the Tokyo Olympics from July 23.

"

Short but powerful 

"

The point of no return seems to have been crossed. In the service of the State, the national television channel NHK is installing in temporary tents a press center on an Olympic site. The government wants to take advantage of "Golden Week", a holiday period to impose, from April 25 to May 11, a "

short but powerful 

"

state of emergency 

.

Restaurants, bars, shopping malls and department stores will be closed.

Train and coach lines will be suspended to limit travel across the country.

Sports events will take place without spectators.

This suggests that the

Olympic Games may also be held without

national

spectators

.

Japan has already decided to ban foreign spectators from entering the Games.

The slowness of vaccination also maintains doubts about Japan's ability to organize the Olympic Games in the midst of a pandemic.

As of Wednesday, less than 1% of the population had been fully vaccinated.

An Olympic torchbearer tested positive

The pandemic continues to disrupt preparations for the Olympics.

A police officer who participated in the Olympic torch relay tested positive for the coronavirus.

According to polls, 80% of Japanese people don't want the Games. 

Unanimity does not reign at the top of the state either.

A senior official said a cancellation remains possible if the coronavirus situation becomes too serious.

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• Japan

• Coronavirus

• 2020 Olympics