In Japan, dirty face masks spark online backlash against prime minister

Shinzo Abe’s plan to distribute two reusable cloth masks to every household in the country had already been widely ridiculed as inadequate. Then thousands of the protective face coverings had to be returned after they were found to be dirty, stained or contaminated with dust, hair and insects. — SCMP

Already widely ridiculed as a feeble gesture from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the delivery of two face masks to every household in Japan has come under renewed fire after thousands of them were found to be dirty or stained or contaminated with dust, dead insects or human hair.

Abe’s initiative to halt the spread of the coronavirus was announced on April 1, with the aim of delivering two cloth masks to every one of the 50 million households in the country after panic buying in the early stages of the pandemic cleared shop shelves of supplies.