Turkmenistan, which claims to have zero coronavirus cases so far, has reportedly also banned the use of the word coronavirus in the country. And if anyone happens to use the word in public places, they can be put behind the bars. The word has been banned by the leader Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, according to Paris-based Reporters Without Borders (RSF).
There is rarely any press freedom in Turkmenistan and thus the media outlets have also been ordered not to write about the pandemic that has affected almost all the countries across the globe.
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As per a report, the government there has also ordered the removal of health brochures distributed at hospitals, schools and workplaces. Moreover, who so ever is caught wearing a mask in public can also be arrested as per the orders.
However, the world community is really pissed about the bizarre rule. Communities and social organizations have claimed that Turkmenistan’s location, close to coronavirus hit Iran, puts it under the risk of catching the virus. They add that it would be inhuman from Turkmenistan’s part to impose such bizarre rules on its people.
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“This denial of information not only endangers the Turkmen citizens most at risk, but also reinforces the authoritarianism imposed by President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov,” Jeanne Cavelier, the head of Reporters Without Borders’ Eastern Europe and Central Asia desk, said in a statement. “We urge the international community to react and to take him to task for his systematic human rights violations.”
