Coronavirus: Japan goes from calm to turmoil

In Tokyo

"State of emergency": the term generally evokes a situation so exceptional that it calls for the establishment of a curfew, the mobilization of extraordinary resources, or even the suspension of public freedoms to restore order to a society in crisis. This is the expression used ( kinkyû jitai ) Friday evening by the governor of the prefecture of Hokkaido after a new day of increase in the number of cases of residents of his prefecture affected by the coronavirus.

But the term, far from calming the spirits, has sowed further confusion on Japan's response to the challenge of the epidemic. Because the young governor, mask on the face of rigor, " simply " recommended to his citizens to stay at home. The number of cases in the prefecture (66, including 2 deaths), does not seem to justify such an extremity.

Suspicion of undervaluation

" Apparently, the governor and the Japanese media use this term without any legal basis. In reality, it is only a request for vigilance

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