The only country in the world that still reports zero Covid cases

The COVID-19 pandemic spread rapidly around the world causing the deaths of millions of people. At the beginning of 2022, there were still eight countries with zero reported cases, mostly islands in the South Pacific Ocean. Now, only one remains on that list…

When North Korea announced its first case of COVID-19 in August 2022, the only country left on the list of countries without covid was, and still is, Turkmenistan. But, how is this possible?

To understand why Turkmenistan had no official record of COVID-19, it is necessary to understand the political reality of the country, one of the most repressive in the world.

Turkmenistan is located in Central Asia and shares borders with Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan and Iran. It is bordered by the Caspian Sea to the west.

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Its territory was home to one of the great cities of the Islamic world, in addition to being part of the Silk Road, used for trade with China, until the mid-15th century.

In 1924, Turkmenistan was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic. It became independent only in 1991, after the dissolution of the USSR.

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Its current president, Serdar Berdimuhamedow, governs one of the most closed and authoritarian countries in the world, according to Human Rights Watch and Reporters Without Borders.

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Thus, it is believed that the data that the country provides to the World Health Organization may not be true.

Professor Martin McKee, from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine who studies the health system in the region said that Turkmenistan's official health statistics are “unreliable."

In fact, the government of Turkmenistan has banned the use of the word "coronavirus" since 2020, denying its existence.

According to the Turkmenistan authorities, a containment plan was drawn up to prevent the disease from entering the country.

However, the country, which has almost 6 million inhabitants, would hardly have escaped the pandemic. Its neighbor, Iran, for example, had more than 7 million officially registered cases.

According to the authorities, people who arrive in Turkmenistan with compatible symptoms are tested for COVID-19. However, the result is not officially announced.

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According to reports from journalists living outside the country, people working in Turkmenistan's health system avoid the terms "COVID" or "coronavirus".

Instead, they adopt the word "disease" and the diagnoses point to "pneumonia" or even "heart failure".

Diplomat Kemal Uckun showed COVID-19 symptoms in the country's capital, Ashgabat. His wife tried to take him to his native Turkey for treatment after sending his chest X-ray to Turkish doctors. However, the Turkmenistan authorities only authorized his trip a few hours after his death.

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Independent organizations, journalists and activists outside Turkmenistan say there is evidence that the country has numerous cases of people infected with COVID-19.

However, they warn that the president (pictured) is downplaying the threat of the virus in an attempt to maintain his public image, according to CNN.

According to the same CNN article, Rachel Denber, Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said, "You look at what happens in other countries in the region, and how different it could be in Turkmenistan."

The BBC report warns: "President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, a former dentist, uses the image of a healthy nation as his main weapon of state propaganda. Admitting that the country is being affected by the pandemic could undermine the legitimacy of his regime".

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The government's omissive attitude towards Turkmenistan's health situation explains why it remains the only country in the world not to register official cases of coronavirus infection.