Really, Prime Minister? Only two?
Like a lot of people in Japan right now, Japanese politicians have been going about their business in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak sans face masks, which are currently in low supply around the country.
That all changed suddenly this week, however, when cases in Tokyo increased and Prime Minister Abe was seen attending meetings on television with a mask covering, well, a portion of his face.
▼ Abe’s small mask looked like the ones young children wear when serving school lunches to fellow students.
安倍が着けてる変な小さいやつですよ
— Suu_YSTK×KPP@SEKAI NO KPP/あいみょん/ (@suu0714) April 2, 2020給食当番みたいなやつ
恥ずかしくて着けられない。要らないので欲しかったらあげます。
無駄な税金の使い方はやめてほしい。
マスク代金と送料を現金で給付してほしい。ちなマスク1枚200円らしいです pic.twitter.com/Uatiwp09Xm
給食当番みたいなやつ
恥ずかしくて着けられない。要らないので欲しかったらあげます。Whatever the reason for the Prime Minister’s small mask, it soon became a secondary concern for people in Japan after he announced that the government would be sending face masks to all households in Japan.
The free distribution of two reusable, washable cloth face masks will reach 50 million households from later this month, targeting areas with rising cases of coronavirus. While the initiative is designed to help people at a time when masks are difficult to find, a large number of these people are less than impressed, and they took to Twitter to share their feelings with the hashtag #マスク２枚 (“two masks”).
▼ “How to wear your two masks.”
マスク2枚の使い方#マスク2枚 pic.twitter.com/TMa19vFZ4j
— ｍｏｉｓｔｏａｓｔ 災 (@moist0ast) April 1, 2020
As the above image illustrates, two masks for all households doesn’t take into account how many family members live together under one roof, which means children like Shizuku from Studio Ghibli’s Whisper of the Heart may have to go without.
▼ “Shizuku, there’s only two.”
「雫、2枚だから」 pic.twitter.com/e0tLskUR8p
—失敗即位
(@sokuishippai) April 1, 2020
失敗即位▼ Same goes for Chihiro from Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away.
政府発表
— ろんげー@コロナで登山自粛中 (@Longe0829) April 1, 2020
1世帯につきマスク２枚配布へ#マスク2枚 pic.twitter.com/0eVrjGiw2c
For bigger families, like the multi-generational household in Sazae-san, the world’s longest-running animated TV series, the two masks would require some creative manoeuvring.
一世帯に二枚のマスク #贋作 #○○風に時事ネタを振り返ろう pic.twitter.com/43j8zUizyK
— 北村ヂン (@punxjk) April 1, 2020
▼ Three-headed kaiju King Ghidorah also faces a predicament.
マスクが2枚しか貰えなかったキングギドラ pic.twitter.com/BL4QNxWGX0
— タ グ オ (@T_a_g_u_oCOMICS) April 1, 2020
▼ And what about Pokémon’s Dugtrio, Dodrio, and Hydreigon?
マスク２枚しかもらえなかったダグトリオ pic.twitter.com/IXeEpzxxtT
— とら太郎(@iamtuyoitora) April 1, 2020
(@iamtuyoitora) —品川紋次郎【非公式】 (@47_MJR) April 2, 2020
品川紋次郎【非公式】 (@47_MJR) マスク二枚しかもらえなかったサザンドラ pic.twitter.com/TZUfq2sJ33
— 佐野丁寧 (@sano_no_teinei) April 1, 2020
While the tweets are humorous, they belie a greater sense of dissatisfaction with the way the government is handling the growing outbreak right now. A large number of people in Japan feel that sending out a couple of masks to each household isn’t going to help as much as monetary support for families and businesses during the health crisis.
And with streets in areas of Tokyo looking eerily quiet right now, there are a lot of businesses who could do with the financial help.
Source: Twitter/#マスク2枚
Top image: Twitter/@Longe0829
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