Asian View
Key words : three people new strain
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210119_01/
Japan's health ministry says three people in the country have been confirmed to be infected with a new strain of the coronavirus now prevalent in Britain. The ministry says the people have no recent history of overseas travel and no known contact with people infected with the variant.
The ministry suspects they may have contracted the variant through community-acquired infections inside Japan.
The ministry on Monday announced that the three people are aged from their 20s to 60s and live in Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan.
This is the first time that people who have never been to Britain and whose infection routes are unclear were confirmed to be infected with the variant.
The head of the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Wakita Takaji, said the infection routes are being traced and the latest cases suggest that community-acquired infections have occurred in the country.
The latest cases bring the total number of the variant cases in Japan to 45.
Key words : independent panel early stage
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210119_09/
An independent panel reviewing the global response to the coronavirus pandemic has issued an interim report. The report highlights delayed public health measures in China, among other global shortcomings in the early stages of the outbreak.
The panel was set up by the World Health Organization. Since last July, it has been reviewing how the coronavirus spread globally. The panel examined responses taken by the WHO and countries worldwide, to learn lessons from their experiences for future preventive measures.
The interim report says, there is evidence from the Chinese city of Wuhan that gene sequencing conducted in late-December 2019 provided the first suggestion that a novel virus may be responsible for the pneumonia of unknown origin.
The report also says, "What is clear to the panel is that public health measures could have been applied more forcefully by local and national health authorities in China in January."
The panel also questioned the WHO Emergency Committee's response. It said, "It is not clear why the committee did not meet until the third week of January, nor is it clear why it was unable to agree on the declaration of a public health emergency of international concern" when it was first convened. The world body made its emergency declaration on January 30.
The report says, the extent of response "in countries around the world fell short of what should have been expected."
The report recommends that the global pandemic alert system needs to be reset.
The review panel plans to submit the interim report to a meeting of the WHO's Executive Board on Tuesday and a final report to the organization's annual meeting in May.
Key words : samsung
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210118_22/
Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong has been sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison in a retrial of a bribery case involving former President Park Geun-hye.
Lee heads the Samsung group.
The Seoul High Court on Monday convicted Lee of bribing the then-President and her close confidante in exchange for help with the merger of two Samsung affiliates.
In 2018, the Seoul High Court initially sentenced Lee to two-and-a-half years in prison, suspended for four years.
But in 2019, the Supreme Court overturned the ruling and remanded the case for further proceedings, judging that the amount of his bribes was much higher than stated in the high court ruling.
The high court on Monday said Lee offered Park and her longtime friend Choi Soon-sil more than 8.68 billion won, or about 7.8 million dollars, in bribes, in response to Park's request. The amount of money considered bribes in the latest ruling was more than double that estimated in the earlier ruling.
The district court sentenced Lee to five years in prison, but he was released by the high court ruling in 2018.
After Monday's ruling, he was sent back to prison, raising concern over possible negative impact on the management of South Korea's largest conglomerate.
Key words : vaccine next month
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210119_03/
Japan's Regulatory Reform Minister Kono Taro will lead the efforts to roll out coronavirus vaccines in the country, with the aim of starting by late February.
Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide on Monday instructed Kono to coordinate the entire process.
The government sees vaccinations as a key to containing the spread of the virus. It aims to make vaccines available by late next month, after checking their safety and efficacy.
Kono said authorities need to work as a team in cooperation with the public.
Kono said he will strive to get as many people as possible vaccinated as quickly as possible.
The government hopes to start vaccinations for medical workers around late February and for the elderly in late March, followed by those with underlying health conditions.
The government plans to step up coordination with municipalities, so they will be able to administer vaccines smoothly to residents. It also plans a public relations campaign to encourage people to get their shots.
The government will continue to call on people to cooperate to reduce commuting by 70 percent and refrain from nonessential outings.
In Tokyo and 10 other prefectures covered by the latest state of emergency, foot traffic has not been reduced as much as when the previous one was in place in the spring of last year.
Key words : rescue china
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210118_21/
Chinese authorities are rushing to rescue 22 workers trapped underground after an explosion at a mine in the coastal province of Shandong. A note retrieved from workers in the mine indicated that at least 12 people are alive.
Chinese media reported the blast occurred at a gold mine on January 10 and caused underground tunnels to collapse, trapping 22 miners.
Firefighters drilled a hole in the tunnel from ground level, and local authorities on Sunday sent a pen and paper along with medicine and other supplies, using a wire.
The authorities say a handwritten note asking for help was sent back.
The note says 12 people are alive at two locations in the tunnel about 650 to 700 meters from the surface, but that the status of the remaining 10 is unclear.
The note also says all of the 12 miners are exhausted, urging the authorities not to suspend the rescue operation.
Accidents have frequently taken place at mines in China and safety management at work sites is a major issue.
The government of Shandong Province has reportedly reprimanded senior officials for their late reporting of the accident.
Key words : china trade
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210119_10/
China's trade with North Korea plunged last year as Pyongyang closed its borders to fight the coronavirus. China's customs figures show trade with its neighbor fell by over 80 percent.
Customs authorities say total exports and imports between the two countries were worth 539 million dollars. That's down 80.7 percent from 2019 and the lowest in 20 years.
Trade fell by about 99 percent in the final three months of the year.
North Korea has suspended flights and trains to and from China since January last year. It appears to have further tightened control on the flow of goods and people toward the end of the year.
At a recent party congress, leader Kim Jong Un said the five-year economic plan had failed to meet its goals in "almost every sector."
The country's economy appears to have taken a severe hit from measures to control the coronavirus. It has also been struggling with international sanctions over its missile and nuclear programs.
Key words : telecom giant
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210119_14/
NTT East is planning to get into the drone business. Officials at the Japanese telecom giant say they are aiming to help the agricultural sector cope with a severe shortage of workers.
The firm will team up with two companies to establish a joint venture.
NTT e-Drone Technology President Tanabe Hiroshi told a news conference on Monday that the use of drones will grow far beyond what had been earlier imagined. He said the new firm will combine the partners' strong points to compete with rivals.
It will make drones that sprinkle pesticide and seeds. The company will also use artificial intelligence to analyze aerial images of crops. Farmers across Japan will be able to use the data to take measures against harmful insects.
China's DJI holds an estimated 70 percent share of the global market for civilian drones, thanks in part to its competitive pricing.
Sony unveiled a new, image-capturing drone last week. The device is capable of AI and is equipped with sensors.
The Japanese government wants to step up domestic drone manufacturing on the grounds of national security.
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