In March, Japan will officially change its policy on masking. And that has some worried that continuing to mask will subject them to harassment.
The change
Masking when you’re sick has always been an accepted practice in Japan. But that choice became mandatory when the pandemic started. Even today, masks are required in all public places. (The government has allowed non-masking outdoors since May 2022. However, many people still wear them even when walking about.)
That’s all set to change on March 13th. The country will move to an official policy of leaving masking up to “individual judgment”.
However, even after the policy change, some health officials are urging prudence. The head of the government’s pandemic strategy, Omi Shigeru, urges residents to continue to carry masks on them at all times. Omi says people should mask up when they’re in crowded and poorly ventilated situations. He urged particular caution in locations occupied by the elderly and immunocompromised, who are at greater risk if they contract COVID-19 or influenza.
Not everyone’s on board with the changes. A recent online survey by news company RSK says that 60% of people feel “uneasy” about returning to a maskless lifestyle. Half of all people surveyed said they plan to keep masking up.
A poll last summer showed a high percentage of people in Japan endorsed continued masking.
Here come the “anti-masking police”?
The change has people worried for another reason. Some on social media say they’re concerned that, even if they want to keep masking, others will bully them out of it. A piece on TV Asahi news rounded up reactions from some Twitter users about how they feared the “anti-masking police” (逆マスク警察; gyaku-masuku keisatsu).
The term is ironic because, at the start of the pandemic, Japan had the opposite problem. A few months ago, people complained that they were being harassed into masking outdoors, despite the official change in regulations.
In Twitter comments on TV Asahi’s piece, some users expressed their desire to keep masking. Most seemed fine with leaving it up to an individual’s judgment. One user’s comment seemed to sum up a lot of people’s feelings: “I wish we’d stop getting sandwiched between these two positions.”
Sources
外出時は「ポケットにマスクを」 尾身茂会長、マスク緩和後も. Mainichi Shimbun
「脱マスク」個人の判断で…“逆マスク警察”も 外すよう強要？ SNS上で心配の声. Asahi TV News
「マスクを外した生活に約6割が不安」RSKアンケート調査 政府の方針は「投げやり」との意見も【岡山】. RSK
｢屋外では不要｣なのにマスク警察の視線が痛い…日本経済の足を引っ張る｢忖度マスク｣という大問題. President Online
