Coronavirus overshadows Japan’s New Year’s Day festivities

TOKYO: New Year’s Day is the biggest holiday in Japan’s calendar, but this year’s festivities have been subdued following record highs in new coronavirus cases nationwide and calls from the government to stay home.

Japan’s Emperor Naruhito appealed to the public to work together through the pandemic in a videotaped New Year’s Day address to the nation released on Friday (Jan 1).

“I am wishing from my heart that everyone can move forward during this hard time by supporting and helping one another,” he said in the address, which was released in place of an annual public appearance by the imperial family during the New Year holidays.

The event was cancelled this year because of the pandemic.

Japan’s Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako speak for their New Year video message in Tokyo. (Photo: Reuters)

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga also released a written statement, vowing he would “protect the lives of the people” and promising to work on “virus countermeasures and economic recovery.”

“The Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games will be held this summer,” he added, saying that preparations for the delayed events were under way.

READ: World ushers in New Year in shadow of COVID-19 pandemic

READ: Tokyo tops 1,000 daily COVID-19 cases with new emergency warning

Tokyo confirmed 783 new coronavirus cases on Friday, according to national broadcaster NHK.

The number of new daily coronavirus infections in Japan’s capital topped 1,000 for the first time on Thursday, reaching a record 1,337, as the country battles a third wave of the pandemic.

About 3,480 people have died in Japan from around 235,700 cases during the pandemic so far.

People wearing protective masks pray on the first day of the new year at the Meiji Shrine in Tokyo, Japan, Jan 1, 2021. (Photo: REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon)

New Year’s Day festivities in Japan involves spending time with family and praying at local temples, where hordes of people wish for good luck in the coming year.

But it was a quieter affair than usual at Meiji Jingu, a shrine in central Tokyo, with masked visitors queuing behind tape on the ground to stay socially distant from one another.

People wearing protective face masks wait in front of main gate to offer prayers for the New Year at the Kanda Myojin shrine in Tokyo, Japan on Dec 31, 2020. (Photo: REUTERS/Issei Kato)

“Last year was full of depressing news because of the coronavirus, so I prayed that people around the world would find more happiness,” a woman in her 40s called Nami said,after offering her prayers at the shrine.

“I prayed for a speedy end to the pandemic,” said Megumi, a sports trainer in her 40s, adding that she hopes to “get through the year by enjoying the new ways that I can connect with friends.”

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