By luck or by design, Japan has been spared the kind of devastating novel coronavirus outbreak taking place in other parts of the world.

That the nation sidestepped disaster without knowing how is cause for both celebration and concern. But as the debate continues over how much criticism or praise the government deserves for its strategy, what matters now is whether it will keep working and for how long.

The nation is approaching the end of an unnerving chapter as the last of its prefectures begin to reopen.