Asian View
Key words : suspended united kingdom
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201228_02/
The Japanese government has suspended entry of non-resident foreign nationals to Japan to prevent the transmission of coronavirus variants.
The measure is taking effect on Monday and will continue through January 31. A similar restriction is already in effect for travelers from the United Kingdom and South Africa.
The government also suspended a conditional exemption of a 14-day self-quarantine that had been applied to Japanese and foreign residents when they reentered Japan after a short overseas business trip.
All travelers returning to or entering Japan from parts of the world where coronavirus variants have been confirmed need to submit a negative test certificate. Such travelers need to take a test within 72 hours before departure and another upon arriving in Japan.
The government says it will continue to allow people to travel on business to and from 10 designated countries and a territory.
Key words : British think tank
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201227_14/
A British think tank says China will overtake the United States to become the world's largest economy in 2028, five years earlier than previously estimated.
The Centre for Economics and Business Research released its economic forecast through 2035 for 193 countries and territories on Saturday.
The report estimates China will see its GDP grow by 2 percent this year, while other major economies are expected to contract.
It says China has successfully contained the coronavirus pandemic and its economy is recovering more quickly than those of the United States and European countries.
The think tank projects global GDP to fall by 4.4 percent in 2020. Japan's GDP is projected to contract 5.5 percent due to the severe economic impact of the pandemic.
Key words : shinto
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201227_19/
Shinto priests have replaced a sacred rope over the Nachi Falls in Wakayama Prefecture, western Japan, ahead of the New Year.
The falls are part of a UNESCO World Heritage site. A nearby shrine worships the falls as its deity.
Priests in white robes carried the "shimenawa" rope to the top of the 133-meter-high falls on Sunday.
They attached lifelines to their waists and entered the ice-cold water to hang the 26-meter sacred rope from trees on both sides of the river.
Priest Koga Maki said it has been a tough year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Koga also said he prays that the coming year will be peaceful and fulfilling for everyone.
The falls will be lit up from sunset on New Year's Eve to the early morning of New Year's Day.
Key words : hospital bed
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201227_09/
Hospital beds in Japan are filling up as the number of the coronavirus infection cases increases rapidly.
Beds for those who are critically ill are nearing capacity, especially in Tokyo and Osaka.
A health ministry report shows that as of Tuesday, seven prefectures were at Stage 4, the highest of the four-level alert scale.
Stage 4 means that health care systems are at risk of collapsing from an explosive rise in infections, with bed occupancy at 50 percent or higher.
The bed occupancy rate was the highest in Osaka Prefecture at 63.8 percent, followed by Hyogo's 61.9 percent, Gunma's 61.8 percent, 59.5 percent for Kochi, 55.5 percent for Aichi, 53.7 percent for Tokyo, and 51.1 percent for Hokkaido.
The occupancy rate for those who are critically ill was at 68.6 percent in Tokyo, up by 2.2 percentage points in seven days.
Osaka had 64.5 percent, up by 9.2 percentage points.
Twenty-two other prefectures were at Stage 3, in which medical systems face the possibility of major disruptions.
Key words : china revised
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201227_05/
China has enacted a revision to the National Defence Law that adds outer space and cyberspace to areas of military activities.
The revised law was enacted at a National People's Congress meeting that closed on Saturday. It is the first revision to the National Defence Law in 11 years.
Under the revision, China regards outer space and cyberspace as important security realms where military activities could take place.
The revised law also says that China may mobilize its military power if the country's "development interests," in addition to its sovereignty and territorial integrity, are threatened.
There was no explanation of what development interests mean but they're widely regarded as economic activities overseas.
Beijing has been increasingly at odds with Washington in the technology sector. Observers say the revision is intended to help strengthen China's military institution and to give legal justification for military activities in the event of an emergency.
Key words : kim lowest
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201227_18/
North Korean state-run media's coverage of the country's leader Kim Jong Un has fallen to a record low this year, possibly because he refrained from appearing in public due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Tokyo-based Radiopress news agency says the North Korean media carried 53 stories about Kim from New Year's Day through Sunday.
That's less than half of last year's figure and the lowest since he started serving as the leader in 2012.
Of the stories, 34 are domestic affairs such as meetings of the ruling Workers' Party and visits to typhoon-hit areas.
Fifteen are related to military matters, including ballistic missile launches.
Coverage of Kim's visit to the cemetery for Chinese soldiers who died in the Korean War was the only foreign affairs story.
North Korea has been strictly limiting exchanges of people and goods with China in response to the pandemic.
Pyongyang has told the World Health Organization that it did not find a single positive case after testing about 10,000 people for the coronavirus.
The Workers' Party is scheduled to hold its congress in early January and Kim is expected to give a speech there. The party regards the congress as its top organ.
Key words : takasaki
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201227_17/
Production of traditional daruma dolls is peaking in a city north of Tokyo ahead of the New Year.
Artisans in Takasaki City in Gunma Prefecture have been making the dolls, which are said to bring good luck, since the 19th century. The city is currently home to around 50 workshops and boasts the largest daruma output in Japan.
The dolls, modeled after the legendary Buddhist monk Dharma, are typically red. But, as 2021 will be the Year of the Ox, some artisans are making dolls that resemble cows, painting them white with black patches.
The patches are in the shape of a gourd, a good omen, to pray for health in the New Year.
Daruma dolls resembling a mythical monster called Amabie are also being made this year as the coronavirus casts its shadow around the world. Legend has it that seeing the creature can help end an epidemic.
A set comprising an Amabie doll and the New Year doll that looks like a cow is particularly popular.
One of the artisans, Nakata Chihiro, says she and her colleagues are wishing for an end to the pandemic and for normal life to return as early as possible. She says they hope their dolls will make people smile.
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