Photo/Illutration The spectator-packed Fuji Rock Festival is held at Naeba ski resort in Yuzawa, Niigata Prefecture, in July 2019. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

The government plans to push back changes to the attendance restrictions for large events until at least the end of September, as a precaution to keep the coronavirus from spreading.

The central government is aiming to extend its limits on the size of events by about a month, officials said, and will officially approve the extension after its expert panel dealing with COVID-19 measures deliberates over the matter on Aug. 24. 

The government had initially planned to end attendance limits for events up to 5,000 people on Aug. 1, allowing more people into venues under certain conditions.

But as the virus continued to spread in Tokyo and in other areas, policy makers became nervous about relaxing restrictions. The expert panel re-evaluated the event restrictions on July 22, and then the government ultimately extended them until the end of August.

Osaka, Okinawa and other prefectures saw a surge in infections after the extension of the measures. As the government eyes the spread of the coronavirus, it plans to once again postpone changing the restrictions.

Officials expect the extension would continue until at least the end of September, but they added that if the virus can be contained at an earlier date, the government would consider relaxing the restrictions sooner.

When the government lifted the state of emergency on May 25, it decided to ease event restrictions in four stages, after assessing the spread of infections every three weeks.

The government on July 10 increased the limit on events to 5,000 people. But indoor events are required to keep attendance “within 50 percent of the facility’s full capacity.”

Outdoor events are required to ensure that visitors “can maintain enough distance from one another.”

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