Japan's Cabinet approves visa cancellation policy

Japan's Cabinet on Friday approved a policy that enables the government to revoke the visas of people coming from China and South Korea, in an effort to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus.

According to the policy, the Japanese government will revoke visas already issued to travelers from China and South Korea. The foreign ministry said that 2.8 million visas held by the Chinese and 17,000 held by the South Koreans will be temporarily nullified from Monday.

From Monday to the end of March, visitors from China and South Korea will also be asked to stay at designated facilities for two weeks to be checked for infections and refrain from using public transportation.

Meanwhile, flights from China and South Korea can use only two major airports -- Narita airport east of Tokyo and Kansai airport in Osaka Prefecture.

The policy will be in effect until the end of this month. However, the foreign ministry said the period may be extended.

The number of novel coronavirus infections in Japan has risen to 1,074 as of 6:00 p.m. local time on Friday, with 696 from the Diamond Princess cruise ship which is moored in the port city of Yokohama.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)