Japan Plans to Put Okinawa under COVID-19 Pre-Emergency

Tokyo, Jan. 5 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government plans to take COVID-19 pre-emergency measures in Okinawa Prefecture, where new coronavirus cases are resurging, informed sources said Wednesday. Depending on the local situation, a state of emergency may instead be declared in the southernmost prefecture, the sources said. The government is also considering the pre-emergency coverage of Hiroshima and Yamaguchi prefectures as the novel coronavirus, probably the omicron variant, is spreading again there particularly fast, a government source said. The Yamaguchi prefectural government, for its part, decided to request for pre-emergency measures in the city of Iwakuni and the town of Waki, separate sources said. The government is expected to make a final decision at a COVID-19 task force meeting Friday, people familiar with the matter said. The latest pre-emergency measures and emergency declarations in the country were lifted entirely in September last year. If decided, such strict coronavirus restrictions will be implemented for the first time since Prime Minister Fumio Kishida took office in October. In Okinawa, the daily coronavirus count topped 600 on Wednesday, showing that infections have quickly spread outside the U.S. Marine Corps' Camp Hansen since the military base was hit by a cluster outbreak including omicron cases in December. Against this backdrop, Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki suggested the possibility of seeking the central government's application of pre-emergency measures to his prefecture in telephone talks with economic revitalization minister Daishiro Yamagiwa on Wednesday. In reply, Yamagiwa said he will respect Okinawa's move. Tamaki plans to make an official request for the measures Thursday. He told reporters that the pre-emergency designation is necessary, adding that Okinawa is believed in a situation where a state of emergency can be declared. In a related development, the Okinawa government explained to local business groups that it plans to have pre-emergency measures take effect from Sunday through Jan. 31. END