Turkish govt seeks to downplay coronavirus threat to prevent tourism sector: Reports

Turkish health ministry remains in denial of the existing coronavirus cases in the country despite reports suggesting confirmed cases having travel history to Turkey. According to a report published in an American magazine, Turkey is pushing narrative through its media that the country is successful in keeping the outbreak in control. The report suggests that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is seeking to downplay the threat in order to prevent the growing tourism industry from collapse. 

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As per reports, Turkey's tourism industry played a major role in the country's economy as it contributed a whopping $30 billion in 2018 to the country's GDP. Turkey has invested $12 billion in a new Istanbul airport, which is expected to be the world's largest. President Erdogan had promised that Turkey would host as many as 50 million tourists, raising the figure by 20 percent. Now, when the whole world is battling to tackle the coronavirus outbreak, Turkey seems to be downplaying the threat, the American magazine reported.

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Coronavirus outbreak

According to data acquired by worldometer, Turkey has so far recorded 47 cases of coronavirus, all of them are active and are kept under observation. As per reports, the escalation of COVID-19 cases in Turkey is likely due to the influx of refugees from war-torn Syria. The report also suggests that 60 per cent of Turkish citizens may now be infected by coronavirus but the government is delaying testing. 

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The COVID-19 has claimed more than 7,100 lives across the world and has infected over 1,82,000 people globally since it first broke out in December 2019. China is the most affected country in the world as experts believe that the virus originated from a seafood market in Wuhan city, the epicentre of the disease, where animals were reportedly being traded illegally. 

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