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Japan aims to vaccinate bulk of nation from May

Jan 21. 2021

By The Japan News/ANN

COVID-19 vaccinations for the bulk of the population will begin as early as May, after the priority vaccinations for medical personnel and the elderly that are expected to start in the next couple of months, said sources close to the government.

According to the road map by the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry, the first priority for vaccinations will be given to about 10,000 frontline medical personnel who treat COVID-19 patients followed by general medical workers, people 65 and over, and people with underlying diseases. The government hopes to finish vaccinating these about 50 million people by the end of April.

Depending on the availability of vaccines, vaccinations for the remaining population ages 16 and over could start in May, with an eye to finishing the vaccination by sometime around July, the sources said.

The government has decided to exclude people under 16 from the vaccination program for the time being. The United States and European nations have taken similar measures.

“Vaccinations cannot be administered to age groups for which clinical trials have not been conducted,” a senior government official said.

The government will consider adding people under 16 once the vaccinations are proved safe for the age group.

Taking the state of preparations in mind, there may be a delay in the vaccination schedule envisioned by the government.

To get a handle on the side effects of the vaccines, the health ministry will conduct follow-up surveys with frontline health care workers who give consent to analyze the impact of the vaccination on their condition, the sources said.

For regular vaccinations, there is a system for reporting adverse reactions, but the ministry wants to improve the accuracy of its surveys by asking people to report their condition regardless of whether there are any side effects.

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S. Korea culls 19.9m poultry, raises guard against bird flu

Jan 21. 2021Shoppers pick eggs at a supermarket in Seoul on Wednesday. (Yonhap)

By The Korea Herald/ANN

South Korea’s agricultural ministry said Thursday it has completed culling 19.9 million poultry since late November as the country continues to raise its guard against highly pathogenic bird flu.

The figures include 16.4 million chickens and 1.73 million ducks, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

The total caseload of the H5N8 strain of avian influenza traced to farms reached 68 as of Thursday.

The latest confirmed case of the H5N8 strain of avian influenza came from an egg farm in Eumseong, 131 kilometers south of Seoul, the previous day. (Yonhap)

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Xi: Advance Beijing 2022 preparations

Jan 21. 2021President Xi Jinping learns about venues construction and athletes’ preparations, and extends greetings to athletes and coaches while visiting the Capital Gymnasium in Haidian District, Beijing, capital of China, Jan 18, 2021. [Photo/Xinhua]

By XU WEI
China Daily/ANN

President emphasizes need for green, shared, open and clean hosting of Games

President Xi Jinping called on Wednesday for coordinated efforts in containing the COVID-19 pandemic and preparing for the Beijing 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games to present the world with a wonderful, extraordinary and outstanding Olympic experience.

Xi’s remark came after he was briefed about preparatory work for the Games at a meeting in Beijing. On Monday and Tuesday, he had inspected competition venues in the capital and Zhangjiakou, Hebei province, the Games’ co-host.

Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, highlighted the importance of adhering to the new development philosophy and ensuring a green, shared, open and clean process in hosting the Games.

The events, slated for February 2022, are a major landmark that comes at the initial stage of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period, and it is important to fully recognize their significance and conduct sound preparatory work with a greater sense of responsibility, mission and urgency, he said.

He urged meticulous efforts in all aspects, saying that work on various fronts needs to be planned or readjusted based on the new situation.

It is important to ensure that the Games are hosted in a simple, safe and wonderful manner and diffuse various risks across the board, he said, adding that the risks of the pandemic must be minimized.

Saying that the Games’ preparation has entered a critical period, Xi outlined preparatory work in six aspects and urged their sound implementation.

He called for steps to refine the venues and facilities and ensure that noncompetition venues will be completed on schedule, with targeted measures to add necessary facilities for quarantine, isolation and emergency response in various venues.

He highlighted the need to establish an efficient and forceful command system for the operations of the events to improve the capacity for command and dispatch across different regions and fields.

It is important to move forward with services and logistics work for the event based on the same standard for the three competition areas and ensure that services such as accommodations, dining, transportation, healthcare and security are offered at a high standard, he said.

Coordination and cooperation with international sports organizations, including the International Olympic Committee, must be stepped up so that the various measures of pandemic containment are strictly implemented, he said.

To raise China’s level of winter sports, Xi urged stronger policy guidance and support to encourage more youth participation in snow and ice sports and more public enthusiasm for ice rinks and ski resorts.

He called for continuous efforts to coordinate the development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and to work toward more favorable outcomes in transportation, environment, industries and public services.

The president also urged more proactive steps in planning the use of the venues afterward, including measures to accelerate the development of a Beijing-Zhangjiakou tourism belt for sports culture.

The Beijing organizing committee must better assume its responsibility, faithfully carry out various regulations and mechanisms and conduct stricter budget control to reduce the costs of hosting the event, he said.

It is important to practice frugality and prevent corruption so that the nation will host a Winter Olympics that is as pure as the ice and snow, Xi said.

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[Singapore] Pilot to reopen nightclubs, karaoke joints put on hold amid increase in Covid-19 community cases

Jan 20. 2021The ministries added that nightclubs and karaoke outlets might be considered high-risk settings. ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN

By Cheryl Teh
The Straits Times/ANN

SINGAPORE – Those hankering for a night out at karaoke outlets and nightclubs will have to wait, as pilot plans to allow for a limited number of nightlife establishments to open have been paused.

The Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) and the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) announced on Tuesday (Jan 19) that to prevent the formation of Covid-19 clusters in high-risk settings, and to minimise risk of further community transmission, plans to reopen nightclubs and karaoke outlets specifically will be deferred until further notice.

Three bars and pubs under a similar pilot will be allowed to continue to operate for now.

“We have seen an increase in the number of community cases in Singapore recently, of which some cases are currently unlinked and under investigation,” said the ministries in a joint media statement.

The ministries added that nightclubs and karaoke outlets might be considered high-risk settings, with people coming into close contact for prolonged periods and in enclosed spaces.

“It is uncertain when the pilot may be able to commence, given the dynamic public health situation. Agencies will review the commencement of the pilots at a suitable juncture,” the ministries added.

“We are working with the operators who were shortlisted for the pilot on the next steps for their businesses, and assisting them individually.”

It was initially announced on Nov 6 last year that the Government would be running small-scale pilots for the nightlife industry to allow a limited number of nightlife outlets – including bars, pubs, nightclubs, discotheques and karaoke establishments – to reopen with stringent safe management measures.

Nightlife business associations were invited to nominate suitable nightclubs and karaoke outlets for the pilots, which was initially set to kick off this month.

Two nightclubs and 10 karaoke outlets were shortlisted, whittled down from a list of eight nominations for nightclubs and 15 nominations for karaoke outlets.

Under this pilot programme for nightclubs and karaoke establishments, only local residents and those with work passes would be able to enter the locations, and only upon showing proof of having taken a Covid-19 test in the last 24 hours.

Clubs were also supposed to limit the capacity to 100 people, with separate dancing and dining zones that can hold 50 people each. Customers would also have to wear masks on the dance floor, and stay 2m apart from other groups, as indicated by floor markings and physical barriers.

It was also reported last November that under the pilot, karaoke establishments would be allowed to have groups of up to five people within enclosed rooms that must be cleaned, disinfected and aired for 15 minutes between groups.

Commenting on the pushback of the pilots to reopen nightclubs and karaoke outlets, Mr Nasen Thiagarajan, vice-president of the Singapore Nightlife Business Association (SNBA), said: “The recovery of nightlife business continues to remain slow and muted.

“While it is a setback to our operators who had put in their resources to make their outlet ready for the pilot, we understand the rationale and intention of the authorities in delaying the programme.” 

Mr Thiagarajan, who is also chairperson of the SNBA pilot committee and CEO of Harry’s International, added that the association  would continue to engage the agencies and authorities, as well as with nightlife operators to move forward. 

“While it remains uncertain on the resumption of the pilot programme for clubs and discotheques, SNBA would like to suggest to the affected pilot operators to review their available options – be it to pivot, or exit – and contact us for assistance on the next step forward,” he said. 

Nightclub patrons also responded to  news of the deferred pilot announcement with disappointment, but said they understood the rationale behind the delay. 

“I’m sure many of us were looking forward to being able to enjoy a night out at clubs occasionally, but with the uptick in community cases, adopting a wait-and-see approach where clubs are concerned might be best for now,” said Mr Justin Hwang, 37, who works as a management consultant.

But others said that they were worried about the state of the nightlife industry if pilot plans continued to be delayed.

“I thought that the safe management measures in place at karaoke joints and nightclubs were more than sufficient to prevent the spread of Covid-19. I hope erring too much on the side of caution won’t end up killing the nightlife industry entirely,” said Mr Tejas Suresh Gadhave, 35, who works in finance. 

Meanwhile, the pilot for bars and pubs started on Dec 8, 2020, with three outlets – Bell Bar at Cuppage Plaza, Skinny’s Lounge at Boat Quay, and Bar Kiharu at Orchard Plaza – having been selected from six nominations fielded by nightlife business associations such as the SNBA and Singapore River One.

These outlets will be allowed to continue for now, but the agencies have said they will monitor the situation closely, and will work with the operators to tighten safe management measures where necessary to safeguard public health.

Tuesday’s announcement puts the brakes on what could have been a possible resumption of some nightlife businesses since the closure of nightlife venues like clubs, karaoke joints and bars without food licences in early 2020, which saw such businesses crippled and going out of business.

In the first six months of 2020 alone, 59 nightclubs, discotheques, dance clubs and karaoke outlets wound up, according to the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority.

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Japanese firm develops virus-killing LED

Jan 20. 2021A prototype of a handheld LED-emitting device developed by Nichia Corp. is shown. It is not for sale to the public. (Courtesy of Nichia Corp.)

By The Japan News/ANN

A Japanese manufacturer has developed a high-power LED that can effectively inactivate the novel coronavirus, the company announced.

Nichia Corp., a major light-emitting diode maker based in Anan, Tokushima Prefecture, expects the LED to be used in new products such as air purifiers.

The virus was inactivated 99.99% when exposed to a deep ultraviolet LED for 30 seconds, according to Nichia. The company conducted experiments jointly with Tokushima University Prof. Masako Nomaguchi and others.

The team discovered that the higher the output power, the greater the effect. Nichia is now ready to mass-produce LEDs with an output of 70 milliwatts, according to the company. Conventional LEDs have an output of 55 milliwatts.

The newly developed LED reportedly is capable of emitting light for about 20,000 hours.

Nichia donated prototypes of rechargeable, portable handheld irradiation devices to the Tokushima prefectural government and other entities. The device is equipped with 12 deep ultraviolet LEDs spaced 25 millimeters apart. As the coronavirus is inactivated simply by holding the device over a surface, the product can be deployed in situations where an alcohol-based solution cannot be used.

“The LEDs could have a wide range of applications, including being installed in air conditioners and air purifiers,” Hiroshi Kamada, Nichia’s executive director, said. “We hope to work with other manufacturers to develop new products.”

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[Vietnam] Solar power capacity to be cut due to oversupply

Jan 20. 2021A building in Đà Nẵng City uses solar rooftop to generate power. — Photo nld.vn

By Viet Nam News/ANN

HÀ NỘI — Nguyễn Đức Ninh, director of the National Power Regulation Centre, has said Việt Nam will cut its renewable electricity capacity due to oversupply.

Ninh told local media at a recent conference of Vietnam Electricity (EVN) that Việt Nam will cut 1.3 billion KWh of renewable energy in 2021.

According to EVN’s statistics, national electricity output generated from solar power in 2020 was 10.6 billion kWh, including 1.15 billion kWh from rooftop solar power, accounting for about 4.3 per cent of the total output from the national electricity system.

Ninh said in 2020, the regulating agency must reduce 365 million kWh of unexploited solar power due to overloads of local networks, mainly in central provinces like Ninh Thuận and Bình Thuận.

By the second half of November 2020, due to the excess power from the growth of solar farms and solar rooftop power, the electricity industry had to make a total reduction of 35 million kWh.

In 2017, the Government issued the first feed-in tariff (FIT) mechanism with the purchase price of solar power for all types of 9.35 cents per kWh, until June 30, 2019, leading to many solar power projects being licensed rapidly.

In June 2020, the Government moved to a FIT 2 tariff of 7.09 cents per kWh for solar power on the ground, 7.69 cents for floating solar power, and 8.38 cents per KWh 7.69 cents for rooftop power. On December 31, 2020, the decision expired and investors must await a new tariff. 

Phạm Quế Phong, chairman of Inter Solar Joint Stock Company, said: “If the upcoming FIT 3 price is issued to prioritise dispersed solar rooftop and has a price difference between regions according to the rate of radiation, it will promote lots of rooftop solar projects and limit solar farm projects.”

“The loose management has led to the fact that the majority of solar rooftop projects are actually now solar farms,” he said.

Phong said the country was estimated to have more than 100,000 rooftop solar power projects with a total output of nearly 10,000 MWp but only 20 per cent of them were rooftop solar power constructions and installed on the roofs of offices, restaurants and hotels.

He said the rest were solar farm projects disguised as rooftop solar power to enjoy the price of 8.38 cents per kWh instead of 7.09 cents per kWh for solar farms.

Phong predicted the buying price of rooftop solar power would decrease this year following the trend in the world, adding: “The reduction will not be much.”

“Households, businesses and administrative agencies with solar roof power should not worry as though the price of electricity is cheaper, the initial investment cost is also cheaper,” he said.

Regarding the FIT prices of solar power, some companies believed that the adjustment of the annual price was reasonable because the prices of solar technology and equipment in the world were declining.

Professor Bùi Thiện Dụ, a former lecturer of the Electrical Faculty of Hanoi University of Technology, said: “The country needs to build a long-term, transparent solar power development policy roadmap towards protecting the interests of investors, especially local users who have installed solar power at home.”

“In addition to the households that install roofs for use, the rest want a stable policy to sell electricity to quickly recover capital. Therefore, for rooftop solar projects, it is necessary to have a separate sustainable mechanism to ease the users and investors’ concern. The Government and the Ministry of Industry and Trade should carefully calculate to not repeat the problems that arose in the past with a seamless policy,” he said.

“Cutting the solar power is not reasonable, they must find solutions to solve problems and develop sustainable renewable energy instead,” he said.

“It is necessary to solve the problem of transmission infrastructure by attracting resources, allowing the private participation while the State manages the capital recovery mechanism for investors, releasing capacity while ensuring the energy and national security,” Dụ added.

He said the sustainable development of renewable electricity should follow strict controls and requires good investment in transmission infrastructure.

Ninh, director of National Power Regulation Centre, said they need to adjust the generating time of small hydroelectricity, avoiding frame from 11am to 1pm, which was the best solar radiation time for rooftop solar.

Ninh asked the Government and the MoIT for mechanisms and principles to mobilise renewable energy sources when the system was redundant or overloaded, adding the centre was now confused about mobilising different sources.

Professor Dụ told local media: “A lack of vision in the solar development and matters in transmission grid has resulted in the incomplete capacity of solar electricity.”

He added the mechanisms and policies on solar development had been unsustainable and brought risks to investors and the people.

Dụ again said Việt Nam has to build a long-term and transparent solar power development policy roadmap to improve its power industry. — VNS

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US will review entire N. Korea policy, consider humanitarian aid: Blinken

Jan 20. 2021This image captured from the website of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee shows US President-elect Joe Biden’s pick for secretary of state, Antony Blinken, speaking during his senate confirmation hearing in Washington on Tuesday. (Senate Foreign Relations Committee)

By The Korea Herald/ANN

The new US administration of Joe Biden plans to review the country’s entire approach and policy toward North Korea, Biden’s secretary of state nominee said Tuesday.

Antony Blinken said the new administration may also try to find ways to get humanitarian assistance to the North to help lessen the suffering of North Korean people if necessary.

“I think we have to review and we intend to review the entire approach and policy toward North Korea because this is a hard problem that has plagued administration after administration, and it’s a problem that has not gotten better,” Blinken said in his confirmation hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

“In fact, it’s gotten worse,” he said.

The former deputy secretary of state said the government will begin by looking at what options it has to increase “pressure on North Korea to come to the negotiating table, as well as what other diplomatic initiatives may be possible.”

“But that starts with consulting closely with our allies and partners, particularly with South Korea and with Japan and others,” he said.

Denuclearization negotiations with North Korea have stalled since the second US-North Korea summit ended without a deal in Hanoi in February 2019. The first US-North Korea summit was held in Singapore in June 2018 between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

While noting the possible need to increase pressure on North Korea, Blinken agreed the international sanctions on the North must not inadvertently harm the North Korean people.

“I think in North Korea and in other similarly situated places, we have to have an eye clearly on the people of the country in question, and do what we can to alleviate their suffering,” said Blinken.

He added the US will try to identify ways to deliver humanitarian assistant to the impoverished North.

“So we do want to make sure that anything we do, we have an eye on the humanitarian side of the equation, not just on the security side of the equation,” Blinken said. (Yonhap)

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Why Biden must end Trump’s trade war

Jan 20. 2021President-elect Joe Biden delivers remarks at the Major Joseph R. “Beau” Biden III National Guard/Reserve Center January 19, 2021 in New Castle, Delaware. [Photo/Agencies]

By Zhang Jun and Shi Shuo
China Daily/ANN

After being sworn in as US president on Wednesday, Joe Biden is likely to move quickly to transform most dimensions of US policy. A glaring exception is China. But if Biden maintains his predecessor Donald Trump’s confrontational approach to the world’s second-largest economy, he will come to regret it.

While Biden may be less overtly antagonistic toward China than Trump was, he has echoed many of his predecessor’s complaints about China’s trade practices, accusing the country of “stealing” intellectual property, dumping products in foreign markets, and forcing technology transfers from American companies. And he has indicated that he will not immediately abandon the “phase one” bilateral trade agreement reached last year, or remove the 25 percent tariffs that now affect about half of China’s exports to the United States.

In Biden’s view, it is best not to make any significant changes to the ongoing approach to China until he conducts a full review of the existing agreement and consults with the US’ traditional allies in Asia and Europe, in order to “develop a coherent strategy”. His chosen US trade representative, Katherine Tai－an Asian-American trade lawyer (and fluent Mandarin speaker), with extensive experience in China－might play an important role in the review process.

But it should not take a comprehensive examination to see that high tariffs and the phase one agreement are fundamentally incompatible. In the last two years, the proportion of Chinese exports to the US subjected to additional tariffs has soared from a nearly insignificant share to more than 70 percent. Similarly, the share of US exports to China subject to tariffs has skyrocketed, from 2 percent in February 2018 to more than 50 percent two years later.

Over the same period, the US has implemented 11 rounds of sanctions against Chinese entities. Last month’s addition of 59 Chinese enterprises and individuals to the US Department of Commerce’s list of export-controlled entities brought the total to 350－the most for any country.

With such high costs and strict limitations on exports, China cannot possibly fulfill its commitment, included in the phase one agreement, to purchase some $200 billion worth of additional US goods and services in 2020-21. Since January 2020, US exports to China have fallen far short of the deal’s targets. As a result, in November 2020, China had fulfilled just 57 percent of its annual purchase commitment.

China’s options for accelerating progress are severely limited. The private sector－which accounts for nearly 80 percent of Chinese demand for US imports－cannot simply be instructed to purchase American goods at such high tariffs. And forcing Chinese State-owned enterprises to pick up the slack would create its own problems.

The conclusion is clear: as long as Biden upholds Trump’s confrontational approach, the phase one accord will be fundamentally unworkable, and further progress toward a mutually beneficial trade relationship will be all but impossible. Bilateral trade could even collapse.

But this does not mean that the Biden administration need only remove tariffs. The phase one agreement is also deeply flawed, not least because complying with it would force China to reduce imports from other countries. By giving the US a significant advantage over China’s other trading partners, the agreement may even violate the World Trade Organization’s principle of non-discrimination.

Other economies, therefore, are trying to level the playing field. At the end of 2020, the European Union and China concluded the negotiations on the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment, and all 10 of the ASEAN member states, together with China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Australia, and New Zealand, signed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership agreement in November.

None of this is in the US’ interest. For starters, ASEAN members－which, collectively, form the US’ fourth-largest export market－are likely to shift more trade to their RCEP partners. The fact that the RCEP lacks the labor and environmental standards seen in agreements with Canada, Mexico and the US will reinforce this shift.

The RCEP is also likely to increase Chinese demand for agricultural and energy exports from Australia and New Zealand. And by indirectly establishing a free trade zone among China, Japan and the ROK－the so-called iron triangle－it will consolidate supply chains in Northeast Asia and the West Pacific. This puts the US at a growing strategic disadvantage.

Therefore, instead of upholding Trump’s confrontational China policy, Biden should accept China’s central role in the global economy, and pursue a mutually beneficial, non-discriminatory trade agreement. China’s efforts to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership－which evolved from the Trans-Pacific Partnership after Trump pulled the US out of it upon taking office four years ago－could provide an important opening here.

The Biden administration promises a fresh start for the US and its relations with the world. To fulfill that promise, he must end his predecessor’s disastrous trade war against China.

Project Syndicate

The views don’t necessarily reflect those of China Daily.

Zhang Jun is the dean of the School of Economics at Fudan University and director of the China Center for Economic Studies, a Shanghai-based think tank. And Shi Shuo is a PhD candidate in economics at Fudan University’s China Center for Economic Studies and a visiting fellow at CERDI-IDREC, Université Clermont Auvergne.

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[Singapore] Vaccination centre at Changi T4 can inoculate 4,000 a day

Jan 19. 2021Front-line workers in the aviation industry registering for Covid-19 vaccination at Changi Airport Terminal 4, on Jan 18, 2021. ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM

By Kok Yufeng
The Straits Times/ANN

SINGAPORE – When Raffles Medical Group received the call to set up a vaccination centre at Changi Airport Terminal 4, it took just five days to get the whole operation up and running.

Last week, more than 1,000 aviation workers were vaccinated there in a trial run of operations.

Full-scale vaccination of air crew and front-line workers started on Monday (Jan 18), and the centre will inoculate 7,000 people this week.

There is scope to ramp up capacity even further, said the centre’s lead physician, Dr Tan Joo Peng.

“It was a combined effort between ourselves and our Changi Airport Group counterparts to set this up in fairly record time,” Dr Tan, 38, told reporters on Monday (Jan 18).

“We have 27 vaccination stations, so based on a conservative planning norm of 12 patients per hour and 14 hours of operations per day, I am fairly confident we can do 4,000 vaccinations, if not more.

“(We have) the ability to scale up further if the nation calls for it.”

The aim, Dr Tan said, is to keep the total time it takes for a person to get vaccinated to under an hour, including 30 minutes of observation time to ensure there are no adverse effects.

A medical fridge, which can store more than 10,000 doses, was specially brought in as the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine has to be stored at minus 70 deg C.

“(Proper) storage of the vaccine is critical. We don’t want any wastage,” said Dr Tan.

Operations managers on the ground also look at the flow of people at the centre and prepare the appropriate number of jabs.

It takes 30 minutes to prepare the vaccine as it has to be got up to room temperature.

At any one time, there are 70 doctors, nurses and healthcare attendants at the centre to render treatment and attend to emergencies.

Said Dr Tan: “We have EpiPens and adrenaline. All the resuscitation equipment is on hand.”

Fortunately, there have not been any adverse reactions to the vaccines so far, he said. Common complaints include aching near the injection site and minor headaches.

Said Dr Tan: “For those with minor reactions, it is actually very safe. It is mainly those who have had anaphylaxis (a severe allergic reaction) that are a no-go.”

Mr Anthony Low, a duty manager for ground-handling and in-flight catering firm Sats, got his jab last week with his wife, who is also in the aviation sector.

While the 52-year-old has a drug allergy, that did not stop him from volunteering to be vaccinated.

“I felt it would protect not only myself, but also the people around me,” said Mr Low, who works in passenger services.

Singapore Airlines pilot Anwar Salim, 49, who was vaccinated yesterday, said: “It was quite a painless procedure.”

Sats president and chief executive officer Alex Hungate, who also got vaccinated on Monday (Jan 18), said aviation workers have even more reason to step up and get vaccinated, given the pressure that the industry has been under due to Covid-19.

Of the 10,000 Sats staff here, 2,000 have already registered for the shots.

Mr Hungate said Sats does not intend to make vaccinations compulsory.

“It is up to individuals whether or not they want to take the vaccine. Our role is to make sure they have all the facts before they make the decision.”

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IOC expects 6,000 athletes at Tokyo Olympics’ opening ceremony

Jan 19. 2021The Japan National Stadium, where the opening ceremony for the Tokyo Olympics is scheduled to be held this summer, is seen in September 2020. (Yomiuri Shimbun file photo)

By The Japan News/ANN

The International Olympic Committee has estimated that about 6,000 athletes will participate in the opening ceremony for the Tokyo Olympics, half the initial prediction before the event was postponed, The Yomiuri Shimbun has learned.

According to sources familiar with the matter, this is intended to limit the athletes’ period of stay in the Olympic Village, to prevent novel coronavirus infections. It will also help simplify the Olympics.

The opening ceremony was initially planned to be held at the Japan National Stadium in July last year, and about 11,000 athletes from about 200 countries and regions were supposed to participate. Many athletes were expected to wait for several hours before marching at the stadium, and even after that, they were likely to stay at the stadium until the end of the ceremony.

Measures against infections are required for the postponed opening ceremony scheduled to be held this summer. The issues to be tackled include the elimination of crowding among the athletes in the waiting areas and on the field after their march at the ceremony. Since June last year, the organizing committee of the Tokyo Games has proposed reducing the number of athletes marching at the ceremony to cut security and other costs, as well as simplify the ceremony.

However, the IOC fiercely opposed this, saying that the ceremony is an event that allows athletes to interact with each other and demonstrate the spirit of the Olympics. The IOC relies on broadcasting rights fees as its main source of income, and scaling down the opening ceremony, which is expected to draw many viewers, was hard for it to accept, according to the sources.

However, the IOC changed its position as coronavirus infections surged around the world. On Dec. 7, it said that athletes would be asked to arrive at the Olympic Village five days before they compete and leave within two days after their competition finishes, in order to prevent clusters of infection at the village, which can accommodate 18,000 people.

According to the sources, the IOC told the organizing committee that about 6,000 athletes were expected to be at the opening ceremony, as those competing in events to be held during the second half of the Olympics will not have arrived in the village yet.

However, the IOC is considering allowing athletes who are training in host towns and other locations in Japan to participate in the opening ceremony if they want to do so, the sources said.