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Japan to End State of Emergency in Tokyo Area as Planned on March 21
posted on by Crystalyn Hodgkins
Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga confirmed on Thursday that the government will lift the state of emergency in four prefectures in the Tokyo area — including Tokyo, Kanagawa, Chiba, and Saitama — on March 21 as planned.
The Japanese government declared the current state of emergency in Tokyo and the neighboring prefectures of Saitama, Kanagawa, and Chiba on January 8. The Japanese government expanded the state of emergency to seven more prefectures on January 13. The state of emergency was planned to end on February 7, but was extended until March 7 in Tokyo, Osaka, Hyogo, Kyoto, Aichi, Fukuoka, Gifu, Saitama, Kanagawa, and Chiba prefectures. The state of emergency covered eight of Japan's 10 most populous prefectures and over half of the nation's population.
The government lifted the state of emergency in six prefectures including Aichi, Gifu, Osaka, Kyoto, Hyogo, and Fukuoka on March 1, but decided to extend the state of emergency in the Tokyo area until March 21.
Japan started its COVID-19 vaccination plan on February 17, and is currently prioritizing medical workers. The second phase of the plan will start on April 12 to include elderly people.
Source: NHK World
