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Relaxed new mask usage guidelines barely spread among Japan public

Jun 28 (inform.kz) - More than a month has passed since the Japanese government relaxed its guidance on mask usage to reflect subsiding fears of the coronavirus, yet its call for removing masks whenever possible has not caught on widely among the public, Kyodo reports.

There has never been a mask mandate in the country, but more than two years of the pandemic has made mask-wearing the polite thing to do, even as heat-related illnesses are emerging as a concern as Japan readies for a boiling summer.

Experts say many people are unaware the government has been proposing since May 20 that masks can be taken off in certain circumstances, which may remain so until a well-known figure like Prime Minister Fumio Kishida outlines the new guidelines publicly.

The recommendation for outdoor mask usage now only applies to those conversing within two meters of each other. But most people continue wearing them outside regardless of circumstances. The government has made some efforts to increase public awareness of the changes, creating leaflets and planning to broadcast the message through commercials. There have been multiple cases of children who wore masks during gym classes being sent to hospital due to heat exhaustion or heatstroke.

The education ministry has asked schools to let schoolchildren go maskless during physical activities, and for younger children to take masks off on their school commutes.

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By 9 a.m. on October 7th, Typhoon No. 22 (Halong) had strengthened to a “strong” intensity, with maximum sustained winds near its center reaching 35 meters per second and a central pressure of 975 hectopascals. The system was moving due north at about 15 kilometers per hour. Meteorological agencies warn that the typhoon will continue to intensify as it travels northward over warm waters south of Japan before curving eastward later this week.

A magnitude 4.9 earthquake occurred off the coast of Fukushima Prefecture around 9:30 a.m. on October 7th, registering a maximum intensity of 4 on the Japanese seismic scale. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, there is no risk of a tsunami caused by this tremor.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump took to social media to congratulate Japan following the selection of its first female prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, writing that "Japan has just elected its first female Prime Minister, a highly respected person of great wisdom and strength.” While Trump did not name Takaichi directly, his post came as she assumed leadership of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and was set to be formally elected as prime minister.

Osaka University’s Shimon Sakaguchi, a specially appointed professor, has been awarded this year’s Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his groundbreaking work in immunology. Sakaguchi is best known for discovering “regulatory T cells,” a type of immune cell that suppresses excessive immune responses, a finding that has had far-reaching implications in medical science.

A collision occurred on the Tokyu Den-en-toshi Line on the night of October 5th when a local train attempting to arrive at Kajigaya Station in Kawasaki City struck a stationary out-of-service train, causing several cars of the latter to derail. Investigators from the Japan Transport Safety Board arrived at the scene on the morning of October 6th to begin examining the cause of the accident.

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The Naha District Court’s Okinawa branch has ordered a group of former youths and their parents to pay more than 4 million yen in damages to Okinawa Prefecture over a riot that took place three years ago when a crowd surrounded the Okinawa Police Station and destroyed vehicles and other property.

A hotel construction plan in the rural wasabi-growing area of Azumino City, Nagano Prefecture, has sparked strong opposition from local residents who fear it will damage the landscape and threaten the region’s iconic wasabi fields.

A mobile battery caught fire inside a train on the Osaka Metro Midosuji Line on October 4th, injuring two women and disrupting operations on both northbound and southbound tracks.

A man in his twenties who was abducted in Amagasaki, Hyogo Prefecture, in June and later killed has been confirmed dead after his remains were found as bones in the mountains of Kochi Prefecture.

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Police have revealed that a woman killed by her former partner in Higashi-Osaka had sustained dozens of stab wounds across her body, including injuries that pierced internal organs.

Right now in big cities in Japan, there are more and more protests by Japanese people against the government's immigration policies. (Japanese Comedian Meshida)

Princess Aiko, the daughter of the Emperor and Empress, has tested positive for Covid-19, the Imperial Household Agency announced on October 2nd, cancelling her scheduled trip to Shiga Prefecture on October 5th and 6th to observe the National Sports Festival.