Tokyo (AFP)

The Japanese daily Asahi, official partner of the Tokyo Olympics (23 July-8 August), called on Wednesday for the cancellation of the event, which it described as "a threat to health", as the country suffers currently a fourth wave of coronavirus infections.

The appeal of the left-wing newspaper, the second national Japanese daily in terms of circulation, was added to opinion polls hostile for months to the holding of the Olympics and to the equally negative positions taken by several economic leaders.

In an editorial, the Asahi urged Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga to "examine the situation calmly and objectively" and "take the decision to cancel the Olympic Games this summer", saying that in the face of the uncertainty linked to the health situation, their behavior would amount to making "a bet", according to him "not acceptable".

The newspaper also recalls the "confounding remarks" of the vice-president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) John Coates, who declared last week that the Olympics would take place even if the city of Tokyo were to remain under a state regime of emergency.

The IOC's "selfish nature" has "come out again" in these statements, criticizes the editorial.

On Sunday, Masayoshi Son, CEO of the large Japanese investment group in new technologies SoftBank, wondered: "Does the CIO have the right to decide (if the Olympics) take place or not?"

Earlier this month, Hiroshi Mikitani, boss of e-commerce giant Rakuten, spoke of a "suicide mission" when speaking of the Games.

- "Strong" opposition -

On Wednesday, the president of the organizing committee for the Tokyo Olympics, Seiko Hashimoto, noted "strong" opposition.

"A considerable number of Japanese are worried," she said at a meeting of the executive board of the Tokyo-2020 organizing committee.

She reaffirmed that the number of foreign delegates would be limited, that they would be subject to restrictions while in Japan and that the Games would not put additional pressure on the already overburdened local medical system.

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"Preparations are progressing well, with a view to a secure Olympics," she added.

Relatively spared from the pandemic compared to other countries, with some 12,000 officially registered deaths since early 2020, Japan has set up a state of emergency in 10 of its 47 departments in the face of the worsening health situation.

Currently scheduled until the end of May, the measure is expected to be extended this week until June 20, according to local media.

The state of health emergency in Japan is mainly to limit the sale of alcohol and to demand the closure of bars and restaurants earlier.

But the government is criticized for the slowness of the vaccination program.

No date has yet been set to extend vaccination beyond medical staff and the elderly.

An exception will be made for Japanese Olympic athletes and some staff who will receive vaccines earlier thanks to doses offered by Pfizer.

According to the Japanese Olympic Committee, these vaccinations will begin on June 1, and doses will be administered to around 600 athletes and 1,000 coaches and other staff.

The US State Department on Monday recommended that US nationals not travel to Japan due to the pandemic.

The White House, however, tempered this announcement Tuesday, saying that the position of the United States "had not changed" and that they remained attached to the Olympics.

© 2021 AFP