Photo/Illutration Police investigators and Tokyo metropolitan government officials head to nightlife spots for an on-site inspection in the Kabukicho district of Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward on July 24. (The Asahi Shimbun)

Within government circles of the mid-Meiji Era (1868-1912), there was a growing call to identify every household that had a member infected with a contagious disease by affixing a label to the house bearing the name of the disease.

But opponents decried the harshness of such an action, arguing it would only result in the public refusing to cooperate with the government's efforts to prevent infections.

The most vocal opponent was Sensai Nagayo (1838-1902), who was the director of the health bureau of the ministry of internal affairs at the time.

Born to a family of physicians of a feudal "han" domain and a medical doctor himself, Nagayo accompanied a mission led by statesman Tomomi Iwakura (1825-1883) on an inspection tour of Europe and the United States.

There, he was deeply impressed by differences between the West and Japan in dealing with infectious diseases--namely, that unlike Japan where the prevention of infectious diseases was left up to individual citizens, the governments and administrative authorities of the West were very much hands-on.

Upon his return, Nagayo racked his brains on how to establish and develop a public health care system, which was still unknown in Japan.

He even had to struggle to come up with a Japanese term for the concept of public health care. He eventually settled on "eisei," and later explained that it looked "elegant" when rendered into kanji characters, and that it also sounded right.

Nagayo installed "eisei iin" (public health care commissions) in every local government, which he gave functions similar to those of present-day "hokenjo" (public health centers).

His dilemma, however, concerned establishing a division of labor with the police.

Every time there was a spike in infections, instances rose of forcible isolation of patients and neighborhood lockdowns.

During the 1886 cholera epidemic, Nagayo objected in vain to excessive police intervention.

This must have upset him so much that he referred to his experience as "the debacle of the 19th year of Meiji (1886)."

According to Kazutaka Kojima, 50, a professor at Momoyama Gakuin University's Faculty of Law who is familiar with Nagayo's achievements, the good doctor saw through the danger of authorities treating patients of infectious diseases as if they were criminals.

"That was because Nagayo believed firmly that the best approach to controlling infections had to be none other than the public and private sectors working together," noted Kojima.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, I am seeing glimpses of the government's heavy-handed measures.

Is it wise to apply the law regulating adult entertainment businesses to justify sending police officers to such establishments?

I hope future generations will not be talking about "the debacle of the coronavirus period."

--The Asahi Shimbun, July 30

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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