In Japan, discontent brews at PM Suga’s economic policies as Covid-19 cases keep rising

PM Yoshihide Suga has continued to push the Go To Travel campaign even as daily infections have been exceeding 2,000 recently

In the hotspot of Sapporo city, some elderly residents say the government seems to have prioritised economic plans over health concerns

Reading Time:4 minutes

People seen in face masks in Sapporo, Hokkaido, where Covid-19 cases have been fast rising. Photo: Kyodo

Published: 6:30pm, 30 Nov 2020Updated: 7:02pm, 30 Nov 2020

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga’s government is facing increasing criticism, including from older residents, over its handling of the coronavirus pandemic, as infections on Sunday crossed the 2,000 threshold for the fourth consecutive day.

The country saw 2,066 new Covid-19 cases, bringing the total caseload to some 148,000, with more than one-quarter of them recorded in the capital Tokyo.

The unhappiness is partly driven by a perception that the “Go To Travel” domestic tourism campaign, as well as other initiatives to restart the economy, is to blame for a third wave of infections.

“I’m not at all happy at how they are dealing with the situation,” said Shizuko Utsumi, 73, a retired teacher who lives in the city of Sapporo in Hokkaido, one of the regions with the fastest rising rates of infection.

“They tried to encourage people to travel with the ‘Go To Travel’ campaign and then to eat out with ‘Go To Eat’, but it was obvious what was going to happen,” she said.

“After people started coming to Hokkaido, we started getting more cases. I’ve heard it’s the same in Tokyo, Osaka and Okinawa, which were all popular with people making the most of the ‘Go To Travel’ campaign,” Utsumi added.

“I think they should have done more to limit it, and when we saw cases increasing in the popular places, they should have shut it down much faster.”

Select Voice

Choose your listening speed

Get through articles 2x faster

1.25x

250 WPM

Slow

Average

Fast

00:0000:00

1.25x