​Men Should Do Grocery Shopping Because Women Take Too Long, Japanese Mayor Says

Mayor Ichiro Matsui was speaking at a coronavirus press conference in Osaka on Thursday (23 April) when a male reporter asked about the possibility of reducing shoppers' entry to supermarkets as a way of lowering the risk of coronavirus infections.

"Men quickly grab what they're told to buy so they won't linger at the supermarket - that avoids close contact with others."

His comments soon drew criticism from the online world, where popular Japanese journalist Shoko Egawa tweeted to argue that 'people who know nothing about daily life shouldn't make comments'.

Egawa's tweet has since garnered 3,400 likes and some 1,300 retweets, with many people commenting to agree with the sentiment.

Condemning the mayor's words, another person also took to Twitter to say: "Japan is a country where these words come calmly out of a mayor's mouth. Deplorable."

Someone else added: "When I hear remarks like this... I feel the need for people with diverse backgrounds to participate in politics."

National broadcaster NHK reports that, as of Friday morning, there were nearly 1,500 cases of Coronavirus in Osaka and the prefecture that surrounds it, making it the second hardest-hit area after Tokyo.

CCN reports that politicians in Japan have come under 'immense fire' for how they have handled the crisis, with health experts warning of the nation's low testing capabilities and slow response from the government.

By mid-April, Japan had only managed to test 90,000 people out of its 127 million population. By contrast, South Korea had tested more than 513,000 out of its population of 51 million.