hello and welcome to nhk newsline. we start in japan as the country comes out of two months of state of emergency over the coronavirus the government is working to minimize it's economic impact. they approved a second supplmentary draft with 117

trillion yen or $100 trillion. earlrlier at a meeting of coalition parties the prime minister said it will take considerable time to resume normal daily life while preveventing infection from spreading. we have to take advantage of the fact that tin fex hhe infection subsided. >> it includes cash handouts of 200,000 yen or $1,800 for health care workers and allocates funding to support the development of drugs and vaccines. other elements plan to help struggling businesses by covering 2-thirds of the rent for six months and increase subsidies for employers.

the latest move comes as japan has confirmed more than 16,600 cases of the virus and nearly 870 deaths. so far, 27 new cases have been reported nationwide. a man in his 80s tested positive for the third time. moving to south korea where health authorities are on alert after the sharpest rise in infections in 50 days. officials said 40 people tested positive on tuesday. the figures nearly double. most of the new cases were in seoul. we are very nervous about community infections and keeping a close eye on the situation. we're doing our best to prevent infections from spreading further with fast testing and contact tracing.

>> the country has been widely praised for containing the contagion but for the past three weeks authorities have been dealing with a major cluster from night clubs i in seoul. so far they're linked to around 260 infections. and on monday, anothther cluste broke out at an e-commerce warehouse in the capital. at least 36 workers and their family members have been infected. about 3,600 staff from the facility are undergoing tests. public health officials are still trying to find the right balance between measures and economic activity. a no mask no ride policy is in place for buses. >> authorities in thailand have decided to extend the nationwide state of emergency for another month. officials say their aim is to contain the possible resurgence of coronavirus infections

despite a sharp drop in new cases.s. the state of emergency was due to expire on sunday but will now run through june. the extension will be the second since the measure was imposed in march. >> the government eased restrictions on shots earlier this month saying the spread of infection was being contained. the daily tally of new cases in thailand stayed mostly in the single digits since late april. johns hopkins university in the united states says the number of cases nationwide stands above 3,000 more than 50 people died. >> turning to bangladesh where they're trying to stop the virus from spreading in the world's largest refugee camp. the number was rising to 26 in recent days. nhk world s spoke to a a un offl

about howow rohingyaya muslims coping with the situation. >> it's been a few years for 800,000 refugees. first, they were military crack down in myanmar which was described as a textbook case of ethnic blending and now their lives are endangngered yet agai by thehe cororonavirus. she works for thehe u.n. high commissioner for refugees. >> people are very anxioious an apprehensive. people are hearing rumors andnd people are worried. people are scared. >> she says her agegency has spt momonths preparing f for this moment. so f f they have plans t to o o ten more but admits refefugees still placece great risks.s. > it's verery challenging.

we hav a aut 40,000 p people pe square kilometeter so measusure like s social disistancing arer diffict to enforce and p people are making a huge effort. >> the and otherer aid groups steppedd up other preventativiv measures but poor internet connection makes it hard and the government restricted actctivit to try to stop the virus from spreadading. as a result, front line staff hass been cut by 80%. >> thihis is stunnining andnd t ensurere that people continue t haveve accesss too crititical services, life savingg services but at the same time to minimize the risk of exposure. it would increase their risk of exposure so it's a bit challenging. >> it also comes at the height

of monsoon season. the extreme weather hasn't been too much of a factor so far. but says more help is needed in what she describes as an unprecedented situation. while only 26 cases have been reported, vigilance is needed anand that urgentt suppoport is necessssary to prprevent an al didistressful situation from becomiming eveven worse. >> everybobody is rusushing to support theheirwnwn communities. it's importatant to focus on international solidarity. the most vulnerable groups. covid-19 doesn't discriminate. it effects everybody.

the animation studio last july left over 30 dead. police have arrested the suspect in the case after he was judged to have recovered enough from life threatening burns. nhk world reports. >> the suspect was transferred from hospital on wednesday and taken into custody at thehe pole station. he was carried on a stretcher. that came ten monons after he

set firee to thee studio in kyo killing 36 people. police said it was difficult due to his condition as well as the spread of the coronavirus. >> ten months have gone by so fast but that hasn't healed my pain. no matter what, my son's not going to come back. i want to know why he committed this h heinous crime. >> police say he admitted to the allegations but has not apologized. he told them that he used it to kill as many people as possibib. he claimed thehey have stolen h work and thatt he started the blaze in revenge. the studio is famous for tv series and movies on everything

from the supernatural to adventures off a high school po group. it's won fans around the world. people from all over visited to offer flowers and pair their respects. many donated money in support. >> i was shocked. >> these artists, it's terrible that they died. i hope the families can be strong. >> the remains of the studio have been cleared away. kyoto animation hasn't decided what to do with the sight. it says, our colleagues who lost their lives will not return and the wounds of the survivors will not heal.

>> u.s. president donald trump is ready to respond later this week to china's plan to introduce a new public security law for hong kong. trump was asked whether he was considering sanctions against china. >> it's something that you're going to be hearing about before the end of the week. very powerfully i think. the chinese government has presented it's plan for new legislation at the national people's congress. beijing says it's aimimed att s guarding publicc order in hong kong. people in the territory have been h holding pro democracy rallies on and off since last june. protests against the proposed law plan are widely expected. more than 3,000 police officers have been deployed around the legislature. the plan is expected to be reapproved by the national people's congress on thursday. beijing says the u.s. is trying

to meddle in it's internall affairs. >> residents of tokyo enjoyed sunny and june-like warmer weather on wednesday but those in other parts of the country saw midsummer-like hot conditions. our meteorologist joins us now with the details. >> it was a very hot weather across many places of central japan on wednesday. 31 degrees. we'll continue to see warmer conditions. it looks like we will continue to see unusually high temperatures, at least into late june according to the japan m t meteorlogical agency. parts of southern taiwan saw over 300 millimeters of rain in one day. the system will likely push down toward the south. rain is going to be easing out there. temperatures are going to be heating up to the mid 30s in

shanghai with sunny weather on your thursday but it's going to be cooling down sharply as we go into friday. 16 for the high on thursday but on your saturday, you might see some snowfall. as for tokyo, the high will be 27 and the humidity level will drop compared to wednesday. now, we are looking at very high temperatures across thehe north toward pakistan and the first heat wave of the season is grippiping thehe regions. the high rose to 50 degrees in pakistan and in northern india. even new delhi saw 46.7 degrees. now conditions will remain on the hot side as we go into wednesday but finally starting on your thursday, it's going to be cooling down. 42 in new delhi and even cooling down to the 30 degree mark on your friday. jacobabad will see the 40s on

saturday finally and we'll continue to see high temperatures for the next several dadays. now we have seen rain fall in sri lanka. the monsoon season will start soon. a cold front is expected to move through and it's going to be sunny across the east. 19 for the high. that's it for me. have a nice day. ♪

that's all for this edition of nhk newsline. thank you very much for joining us and we'll have more for you soon. >> welcome to newsline index. japanese children face rules governing their new life. no playing ball games in public parks, no dying their hair. skirts must be a fixed length and jackets a specified color. sometimes rules serve a purpose but if they're unreasonable why

not speak up and challenge them? that's easier said than done even for adults but today we have two reports on children that did just that. in japan, signs like this are often seen in parks. in fact, many local municipalities banned playing baseball and soccer in parks. in many cities, children just don't have enough space where they can play freely. recently, so elementary school children in tokyo took matters into their own hands. >> after school every day. >> but last february, he and his friends suddenly lost their practice space. they had been using the grounds for a closed down school.

then construction of a facility began on the site. their area was reduced by half and both sports were banned. the kids had no choice but to play in the park that was 1/6th the side. signs warn against hitting the fence with balls so they could only practice passing. [ speaking foreign language ] he and his friends are moved to take action. after visiting their office, they are told that they can write to the mayor. they expressed their disappointment in not being able to play soccer anymore and ask

for a new park. the mayor suggests they should check out other local parks or just continue usingng their regular place. >> the students decide to check out the rules of their areas paparks. almost none allow after school use. this park closes at 4:30 p.m.. the grounds of this closed school can only be used on

weekends. this woman works for a volunteer organization that keeps an office. she steps in to help. during the monthly student meeting she and her team advise them to take their request to the world assemblbly as even minors can make petitions. >> i saw that the kids were suffering. i was careful to take a backseat and just help them to express their own opinions clearly. >> yuma and his friends decide to file a petition. they make a few demands. one, to extend the parks opening hours. another, to allow the use of the

vacant schools grounds on weekdays. they hand deliver their petition. >> it was the first petition ever submitted by elementary school students in the world. >> we must consider thihis broay as d differe peoplple have differerent priorities. we must consider small children, for example. >> is it possible to find a way toto create park rules that all children to p play ball sports more freely? >> yuma and his friends get welcome news

. four of their five requests are accepted. park hours are extended for an hour. the closed school grounds can be used on wednesday. >> so excited. [ speaking foreign language ] >> they took action for real change. they have proven that children

can also have a place in community parks. nhk world. in our next, we meet some high school students who voiced their displeasure and dare to take action. >> there's a rule that says students can only wear them has come under scrutiny. in winter the temperature drops to below freezing and there can be heavy snow but they're not popular for school guards often only wearing socks even when it's freezing cold. >> high school girls are at a sensitive age wearing beige tights looks unnatural and is

not cool. >> the students ask their school to allow black tights because it's the color the girls usually wear but they weren't sure how many supported the idea. so they put out a questionnaire to students and parents. they collected more than 1,300 answers and nearly 90% were in favor of allowing tights. they presented their request to the school again feeling this time it will be approved. it took two months. the school did not budget. it said opinions about aparns a -- appearance are subjective. >> i feel that white socks and beige tights are part of the image on hida high school

students. >> 90% of the replies were positive and yet we were told it's all subjective. does our opinion even matter? >> the school offered a compromise. it suggested that students get together with parents, alumni and teachers to hold a discussion on the matter. the students saw a chance. at the meeting, they outlined their position again. they got the backing of everyone that was there. >> i take the opinions of the parents and alumni seriously. >> then, in november. >> the next morning, some students were sporting black

tights. through active campaigning, these students amended their schools rules. it taught the students an important lesson, to question them if they appear unreasonable, not just follow them. nhk world. >> we now go over to speak with a specialist in school and education issues in japan. thank you for. >> jen:ing us. in our last report we saw how rd it was foror the children to changege one s simpl ruru. why do you thinknk there's so my rurules here in japan? >> broadly speaking peoplee hav a tendency to turn to schools to solve problems involving

students. for example, if people are out late at night they'll probably call their schools and blame teachers. this found that teachers in japan work the longest hours in the world. a major reason is for -- for this is, the overreliance on teachers. they impose strict rules on students appearance is an ideal way for them to demonstrate their commitment to students guguidance. >> strict r rules schools have long been a h hot topic in japa. what canan be done too make the more reasonable. >> i feel parents and others should stop relying on schools so much. that wouould ease the pressure teachehers to g get tough on stududents by tightening t thei rules. increasing transparency can also

be there. public high schools were recently publishing their rules online. i think that can really help to alea alleviate unreasonable rules. >> but usually in japan the rules go unquestioned. if students stick to the rules parents and teachers are generally happy but as we saw it's important to speak up if the rules are unreasonable. does that seem reasonable to you? >> it does. if there are too many strict rules, children just end up following instructions without developing the ability to think onon their own. japan's educationon system need to focus more on encouraging than skill rather than just requiring kids to follow the rules. and that can help create a more creative society. >> children are our hope for the future so we need to develop their potential as much as

possible. thank you. we are sorry about the quality of the online video connection. and that's it for today's newsline in depth. thank you for watching and see you again next time. anchor: italy and spain are set

to get the lion's share of the e.u.'s latest aid package, aimed at bolsterering thee bloloc afte papandemic. the european commission will ououtline h how it plans to usee total of 750 billion euros. we will have more from our correspondent in brussels. should frerench nationals be tracked and traced when it comes to covid-19? that is the issue being debated this wednesday in the national assembly. a new piece of government software standing by to be rolled out. brazil, reports of f the world's highest single day coronavirus death toll.