Response to COVID-19 in the Asia-Pacific: A Multidisciplinary Perspective from Tokyo

To imagine a post-pandemic world, Waseda University’s Graduate School of Asia-Pacific Studies (GSAPS) o ers an intellectually stimulating research environment in Tokyo. Students will approach the COVID-19 response in the Asia-Pacific from a multidisciplinary perspective.

Infectious Disease Outbreaks on International Ships: Reimagining Global Health Governance?

A COVID-19 outbreak on the Diamond Princess cruise ship drew global attention in February 2020. The cruise program was run by a U.S. company, Princess Cruises, which owns the ship. When a passenger who disembarked at a port in Hong Kong tested positive for COVID-19, authorities reported the case to the World Health Organization and Japan, based on the 2005 International Health Regulations. After Vietnam, Taiwan, and Okinawa, the Diamond Princess was on its way to Yokohama. According to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, jurisdiction over the ship belongs to the flag state—the United Kingdom—while on the high seas and to the coastal state—Japan—while on Japan’s internal waters. Japan allowed the ship to call at Yokohama and extended support to passengers and crew.

As the burden on coastal states is heavy, a new mechanism of international cooperation and burden sharing among stakeholders needs to be established for future infectious disease outbreaks on international ships. How would you reimagine global health governance?

The Politics of Wearing Face Masks: Public Health or Individual Freedom?

Many Asian countries have been successful in nonpharmaceutical interventions to the pandemic. In Japan, people wear face masks to mitigate spring allergies and to prevent spreading seasonal influenza in winter. A er the first case of COVID-19 was identified in Japan, many people started wearing face masks voluntarily when commuting. However, due to the surge in demand and the disruption of supply chains from China, disposable non-woven masks vanished from stores. People blamed the government for not doing enough. In response, then-Prime

Minister Shinzo Abe launched his plan to distribute two small gauze masks to each household. Many people were dissatisfied with his plan and its implementation, calling them “Abe no Masuku” (Abe’s masks).

In addition to advocating for face-mask wearing and hand washing, a campaign called Avoid the 3 Cs was launched, encouraging people to stay away from crowded places, close-contact settings, and confined and enclosed spaces. Do you think the relative success of such nonpharmaceutical interventions may have delayed the vaccination rollout in Japan?

A State of Emergency During the Olympics: Public Health or Economic Development?

The Japanese Constitution does not allow the government to enforce a hard lockdown, as it would be considered an infringement on personal freedoms. Instead, the Japanese government asks for cooperation in reducing human movements and restricting commercial activities. Determined to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the government declared another state of emergency, agreeing not to have spectators at venues in the greater Tokyo area. As an unprecedented international mass gathering occurring during a pandemic, there will be many lessons to be learned.

What has happened in Japan may help students identify knowledge gaps in an academic community and encourage them to formulate their own research question. Waseda University’s GSAPS is an ideal location for students to conduct multidisciplinary research.