Japan's busy streets are coming back to normal as the state of emergency had been lifted. How's it gonna change the ordinary? (Image via Time Out)

Concerns and hope mingle as Japan lifts the state of national emergency

Alfonsus Adi Putra
Business & Industry
Medical and Health
May 26, 2020
1130
On Monday, the Japanese government decided to lift the state of emergency on the remaining prefectures over the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The decision means that it is possible now for the Japanese people to return to their daily life, businesses running again and schools reopening. The Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe, declared that Tokyo, Kanagawa, Chiba, Saitama, and the northernmost island, Hokkaido, are freed from the state of emergency.

While it sounds good, some Japanese people are concerned that even after seven weeks after the state of emergency, there might be another wave of worse infections. Returning to work, some people asked the Japanese government for measures to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2).

Some workers showed their thankfulness to the announcement by going out with friends and hoping that the business will recover as the peak season is approaching. Restaurants are also hoping to regain its stance as it lost 90 percent of sales compared to the 2019’s figure. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan, both the number of domestic and foreign customers plummeted.

For working parents, reopening of schools might shed a light on the lost time and family stress. However, as the world is embracing the “new normal” lifestyle, parents are worried about the teachers who need to take extra care to hold educational activities while preventing the spread of SARS-CoV-2.

Source: https://bit.ly/2TEYC8K

Politics , Regulation , Health , Medical , Pandemic , Coronavirus , COVID-19 , Asia , Japan , Business , Education