TOKYO: Prime Minister SUGA Yoshihide underlined his determination to overcome the novel coronavirus crisis in a policy speech before the Diet, Japan’s parliament, on Monday.

Giving the speech at a plenary session of the House of Representatives, the lower chamber, Suga said the government will speedily submit legislation to revise a special measures law related to the fight against the coronavirus.

He also reiterated his eagerness to hold the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics this summer, which have been postponed from 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

On Monday, the Diet was convened for a 150-day ordinary session.

The proposed revision is aimed at boosting the effectiveness of measures to fight the virus crisis, including by introducing penalties for failures to follow authorities’ requests for shorter business hours or temporary closures while mandating compensation for those complying with such requests.

About the government’s responses to the epidemic, which have been criticized as slow, Suga called for the public’s understanding, saying that the government will “stand on the front line” in the fight against the virus crisis.

Since taking office in September last year, Suga had been trying to balance the fight against the virus with economic activities. But he has shifted his focus to efforts to contain the crisis, with infections spreading rapidly across the country and medical care systems being strained.

Suga promised to swiftly end the so-called Stage 4 situation of the epidemic, serious enough for a state of emergency, by thoroughly implementing measures including early closures requested to eating and drinking establishments.

The COVID-19 emergency is in place in 11 of the country’s 47 prefectures, including Tokyo. Stage 4 is the worst level of the country’s coronavirus alert scale, indicating an explosive spread of the virus in an area.

The government will proceed with preparations to start coronavirus vaccinations by late next month, Suga said, also expressing his readiness to get vaccinated as soon as his turn comes.

Meanwhile, he did not mention the Go To Travel tourism promotion program, his pet project, which he has had to suspend entirely amid the surging infections.

Regarding his key initiatives to realize carbon neutrality and promote digitalization, Suga said that the green and digital fields are key driving forces for economic growth.

The government will “take a bold step in environmental investments,” to realize its goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to virtually zero by 2050, Suga said.

To attract such investments from both home and abroad, the government will create a financial market framework, he added.

Referring to the planned establishment of a digital agency, one of his key policy targets, Suga said that the agency will be “a symbol of reforms and lead digitalization efforts across the country.”

Amid the raging epidemic, concerns are growing that it may be difficult to hold the Tokyo Games this summer.

Suga, however, said the government will continue its preparations with a determination to hold the games as “proof that humanity has defeated the novel coronavirus.”

He also noted that “trust of the public is indispensable” for the realization of “a society filled with a sense of safety and hope.”

Suga made an apology for his past statements at the Diet over a high-profile scandal related to annual cherry blossom-viewing events hosted by former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

“I feel extremely sorry for making remarks that were factually inaccurate. I apologize again,” he said.

On foreign affairs, Suga expressed his intention to hold a meeting with U.S.

President-elect Joe Biden at an early date to strengthen the Japan-U.S. ties, which Suga regards as a diplomatic linchpin.

Japan-South Korea relations are in a serious state, Suga said regarding the two countries’ row over the issues of wartime labor and comfort women forced to provide sex at brothels for Japanese troops during World War II.

“We’ll continue to urge South Korea to make appropriate responses,” Suga added.

The government “will make necessary claims and strongly urge China to take specific actions,” he said, regarding Chinese government ships’ repeated intrusions into Japan’s territorial waters near the Senkaku Islands in the southernmost prefecture of Okinawa.

JIJI Press