Japan's domestic tourism campaign faces scrutiny

Tokyo

A multi-billion dollar Japanese campaign to boost domestic tourism faced scrutiny on Thursday with the economy minister due to meet experts as critics worried that encouraging people to travel out of Tokyo risks spreading the coronavirus.

The concerns in Japan highlight a conundrum facing countries around the world over how to balance reviving economies battered by the coronavirus while safeguarding public health.

Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura is due to meet experts to discuss the government’s “Go To” campaign to promote domestic tourism, a day after Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike questioned its timing and methods, according to Reuters.

Japan has not seen the kind of explosive spread of the coronavirus that has killed tens of thousands in other countries. But new cases, in Tokyo in particular, have stoked alarm, with the city raising its coronavirus alert to the highest level.

Governor Koike said the capital was likely to see coronavirus cases top 280 on Thursday, in what would mark a record daily high for the city.