Society

Shibuya bans drinking on street for Halloween

Jun 20 (NHK) - Tokyo's Shibuya Ward has passed a bill to ban drinking alcohol in streets, parks and open spaces near Shibuya station during Halloween and other major events. The ordinance will go into effect on Thursday.

The ban is to be imposed only on special days, including the weekend before Halloween, Halloween itself and the day after, as well as New Year's Eve.

The ordinance stops short of including penalties, but violators will be instructed to stop drinking. It also urges stores to follow the request by Shibuya Ward to halt sales of alcohol.

Acts that disturb public peace are also banned, such as making noise with loudspeakers, or climbing up lampposts and street signs.

Local shop owners have been calling for effective measures, citing vandalism they suffered during Halloween.

Akira Sekiguchi, who works at clothing store in the area, says on the weekend before Halloween last year, people wearing costumes broke chains cordoning off the store's property and left behind broken liquor bottles.

He expressed hope that the municipal government will let the new rules be known and that the police will tighten security measures.

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