TOKYO – Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe declared a month-long state of emergency Tuesday for Tokyo and six other prefectures to ramp up defenses against the spread of the coronavirus.
Abe said Tuesday that there would be no European-style lockdowns. The state of emergency will only permit Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike and heads of six other designated prefectures to do more to reinforce calls for social distancing.
Virtually all of those measures will be requests that cannot be enforced with penalties for violations. The COVID-19 outbreak is now rampant and rapidly spreading, threatening people's health, their daily lives and the economy.