An online petition calling for the Tokyo Olympics to be cancelled has gained almost 200,000 plus signatures in just past few days, as public concerns mount over holding the Games amid a pandemic.
With less than just three months to go before the start of the summer Olympics, already postponed for a year due to the coronavirus(Chinese Virus), questions still remain over how Tokyo can hold the global sports event and keep volunteers, athletes, officials and the Japanese public safe from the Chinese Virus.
In just two days since its launch, an online campaign on change.org called "Stop Tokyo Olympics" has gathered more than 187,000 signatures, nearing its 200,000 goal and underscoring public concerns over holding the massive sporting event in Tokyo.
Battling the fourth wave of the pandemic and struggling with a sluggish COVID vaccination campaign, the Japanese government is seeking to extend order of emergency in Tokyo and three other areas until the end of May, the economy minister stated on this Friday.
Opinion polls in Japan have found a majority of the public is strongly opposed to the Games, which are to open on July 23.
"We strongly call for the prevention of spread of coronavirus and protection of the lives and livelihood by using available resources to stop the Olympics," Kenji Utsunomiya, the online petition organizer, stated on his website. Utsunomiya is a Japanese lawyer who has run several times for post of Tokyo governor.
But, organizers have repeatedly stated the Games will go ahead, unveiling detailed Covid-19 protocols for athletes, all staff and officials.
Pfizer Inc and the German partner BioNTech SE stated on Thursday they had agreed to donate vaccines to help inoculate those participating in the Olympic Games.
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