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Asia Minute: Japan’s 'Golden Week' Becomes State of Emergency

Joshua Damasio
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Flickr

In a “normal year,” this would be a busy week for Japanese tourists visiting Hawai‘i. It’s the middle of “Golden Week”—a series of holidays that usually makes it a popular time for travel. But this year, several parts of the country remain under a state of emergency.

Tokyo has been under a state of emergency for a little more than a week now, the third time parts of Japan have been under such orders since the pandemic began.

These restrictions also cover the western prefectures of Osaka, Kyoto and Hyogo—in all, home to about a quarter of Japan’s population.

This is “Golden Week” in the country—a series of national holidays and usually a peak travel season.

But under the emergency, restaurants can’t serve alcohol and need to close early.

Other enterprises are closed entirely, from bars and theaters to museums and department stores.

The professional baseball season continues, but with no in-person attendance in affected areas.

Japan has had a relatively low number of cases compared to many places in the world, but they have recently spiked in number and severity.

Tokyo has had its highest case count in more than three months, while Osaka broke its record high over the weekend.

The government is still holding to the official line that the Summer Olympics will take place as scheduled starting in July.

This state of emergency is slated to end on May 11, several days before the planned Tokyo arrival of the president of the International Olympic Committee.

Bill Dorman has been the news director at Hawaiʻi Public Radio since 2011.
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