Japan PM defends school closure plan despite critics
Tokyo, Feb 28 (AFP/APP): Japan’s prime minister on Friday defended his call for schools across the country to close over the new coronavirus, an abrupt decision that stunned officials and parents alike.
The move, announced Thursday, came as the country stepped up its response to the outbreak, and the operator of Tokyo’s Disney resorts said its two parks would close for around a fortnight — the latest in a string of closures and cancellations.
Shinzo Abe’s surprise move prompted criticism, with officials saying they had not been consulted and parents questioning how to balance work with the sudden lengthy school holiday.
But the prime minister defended the decision on Friday, saying the government “received expert views that the coming one or two weeks are crucial”.
“We have to prevent emergence of a new cluster of patients among children,” he told parliament.
“We made this decision because we regard it as our political responsibility.”
The government cannot order schools to shut, a power that belongs to local councils, but authorities in many regions said they were neither consulted nor warned about the decision.
