Japan’s young people can’t resist the nightlife – or Covid-19
- A spike in cases in red-light districts in Tokyo and Osaka has been traced back to people in their 20s and 30s whom an expert says ‘just want to have fun’
- The government is cracking down on venues not abiding with social distancing, even as it proceeds with a plan to boost domestic travel
According to epidemiology experts, this cavalier attitude is why the government has little choice but to crack down on venues that are not abiding by recommendations on social distancing and safety for customers as well as staff – though this response may be too late, they warn.
“I think there is a certain section of the population who are in their 20s and 30s who just want to do what they want to do and when they want to do it,” said Makoto Watanabe, a professor of media and communications at Hokkaido Bunkyo University.
“They may have followed the rules on social distancing and not going out at the beginning of the crisis, but that was weeks ago and they have grown bored of being at home. They just want to have fun,” he said, adding that this subset of the population was also more likely to consider itself invulnerable to the disease.
Tokyo reported 143 additional cases of the virus on Tuesday, after enduring a spike above 200 cases for four of the past six days. Those figures include an all-time high of 243 new infections on Friday, most of which were traced back to the city’s red-light district, and involve workers and customers in clubs and bars who are in their 20s and 30s.
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“The government has tried very hard to find a balance between protecting the health of the people and protecting businesses, but from these new cases and the worrying new spread outside the cities, I don’t think it is working any more,” said Yoko Tsukamoto, a professor of infection control at the Health Sciences University of Hokkaido.
