Roundup: Tokyo's COVID-19 cases top 50 for 4th straight day, gov't stays pat on restriction easing

0 Comment(s)Print E-mail Xinhua, June 29, 2020
Adjust font size:

TOKYO, June 29 (Xinhua) -- The Tokyo metropolitan government on Monday confirmed 58 new COVID-19 infections marking the fourth straight day new daily cases in the capital have topped 50 amid concerns over a resurgence of infections.

Of the 58 new cases, 46 people in their twenties or thirties have been infected, or about 79 percent of the total, the Tokyo metropolitan government said.

A COVID-19 cluster-hit red-light district in Tokyo's Shinjuku ward has seen an addition of 32 people infected, the metropolitan government also said, with Monday's overall cases having no known infection routes in 24 of those testing positive for the pneumonia-causing virus.

As of the latest figures Monday evening, the cumulative total of COVID-19 infections in Tokyo now stands at 6,171, accounting for roughly one-third of all cases nationwide.

The total number of infections, not including those related to cruise ship quarantined in Yokohama, now totals 18,631 across Japan, with 110 new infections confirmed on Monday, official figures showed.

The death toll from the pneumonia-causing virus now stands at a total of 985 people, according to the latest figures from the health ministry and local authorities Monday evening.

The Japanese government earlier on Monday said it will not yet declare another state of emergency, however, despite the recent and continued spike in daily COVID-19 cases in Tokyo and an uptick in infections nationwide.

Japan's top government spokesperson Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a press briefing on the matter that the recent spike in cases, particularly in Tokyo, did not necessitate the government issuing a new state of emergency over the virus outbreak at this juncture.

Suga's remarks followed concerns that business closures may be requested again by prefectural governments and restrictions on people's movements across prefectural borders, which have just recently been lifted, reimposed, following the latest upswing in cases.

His remarks were also with regard to the Tokyo metropolitan government on Sunday reporting the highest daily infection tally since the state of emergency was lifted on May 25, at 60 new cases in the capital of 14 million people.

Suga intimated Monday that the rise in cases in the capital was due to intensive testing of those known to have come into close contact with people already testing positive for COVID-19, as opposed to new infections with no known traceable infection route.

Despite Japan seeing an uptick in overall cases recently, with a daily average of around 100 new infections, Suga said that the government had no plans as yet to clamp down on the freedom of movement of people and request the public to once again refrain from making unnecessary trips across prefectural borders.

On June 19, the government completely lifted its nationwide travel restrictions, with the move met by throngs of passengers returning to airports and train stations.

Prior to the lifting of travel restrictions, the government had requested that people continue to refrain from making unnecessary trips across prefectural borders, in particular urging against travel to and from Tokyo, the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic here, and prefectures surrounding the capital including Saitama, Chiba and Kanagawa Prefecture.

The request was also made for people to refrain from traveling to or from Hokkaido, Japan's northernmost prefecture, amid a resurgence of COVID-19 cases there at the time.

The Tokyo metropolitan government, on the same day, also lifted its remaining business restrictions on nightclubs, live music and similar venues and allowed the number of people attending large-scale, outdoor events like concerts to be increased to 1,000 people.

Indoor venues, meanwhile, are now allowed to permit entrance to numbers of people totaling half the venue's capacity.

The easing of restrictions on nightclubs has concerned Tokyo metropolitan government officials as well as members of the public in the capital, however, following the outbreak of a cluster of infections in downtown Tokyo's Shinjuku ward.

This area, known for its adult entertainment establishments, has been the focus of a disproportionately high numbers of daily COVID-19 cases being detected recently among staff and customers of host and hostess clubs and similar adult nighttime establishments.

In addition, with the Japanese populace gearing up for summer vacations spent at domestic holiday spots amid ongoing travel bans in and out of the country making overseas vacations problematic, concerns have been voiced by prefectural officials that the virus may spread commensurate with the increase of people moving around the country to take holidays.

Especially, they said, concerns are mounting about people from large urban areas, like Tokyo, visiting small, countryside regions in the north of the country to escape the summer heat, or subtropical areas in the south, known for their resort hotels and pristine beaches, with both types of hot-spots largely, as yet, unaffected by the coronavirus pandemic, officials said.

To this, Japan's top government spokesperson said that previous hopes that the virus would weaken in hot temperatures or under more intense ultraviolet light, had not being proved incontrovertibly correct, as countries and regions with high temperatures around the world are still recording extremely high numbers of daily infections and death tolls.

With the Japanese government for the time being not considering shifting its stance on its recent easing of coronavirus-induced restrictions, Suga said Monday that the government is still doing everything in its power to prepare and brace for a second wave of COVID-19 infections. Enditem

Follow China.org.cn on Twitter and Facebook to join the conversation.
ChinaNews App Download
Print E-mail Bookmark and Share

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)

No comments.

Add your comments...

  • User Name Required
  • Your Comment
  • Enter the words you see:   
    Racist, abusive and off-topic comments may be removed by the moderator.
Send your storiesGet more from China.org.cnMobileRSSNewsletter