COVID-19 is everywhere – or not?
Strange as it may seem, 11 countries have remained free from the pandemic since the coronavirus devastated the rest of the world.
Not surprisingly, they are island nations in the Pacific with little or no external traffic and who closed their doors ahead of time, banning all international visitors from their shores. The 11 countries, according to Star, that have not registered any cases of COVID are:
The Cook Islands
Population: 17,000
Precautions included closing schools in Rarotonga, the most populous of the country’s 15 islands, and encouraged social withdrawal in public – but after a few weeks, life returned to normal.
Tuvalu
Population: 11,500
The borders were closed immediately with a strict two-week quarantine imposed on anyone entering the country.
Tonga
Population: 104,000
In the beginning, this island nation redirected cruise ships and banned international travel.
Pitcairn Islands
Population: 50
Populated entirely by the descendants of the famous HMS Bounty mutineers and a handful of Tahitian captives, who landed on the islands in 1789, no COVID-19 cases have been recorded here.
Palau
Population: 17,900
Comprising more than 300 islands, the country suspended all travel and instituted a strict quarantine for citizens to return home.
Niue
Population: 1,624
Nauru
Population: 12,700
It may be COVID-10 free, but the lives of many on this island are still hell. One of the poorest countries on the planet, to make money, the government rents most of its land to Australia for use as an internment camp for illegal immigrants and refugees.
Kiribati
Population: 116,000
Very few airlines fly to Kiribati, so it was easier for this country to ban travel.
Tokelau
Population: 1,411
Located halfway between Hawaii and New Zealand, this small nation does not yet have COVID-19.
Micronesia
Population: 112,000
Comprised of more than 600 islands, the government has warned since the beginning: “No passenger is allowed to land any air or sea vessels originating outside the Federated States of Micronesia, with the exception of individuals whose exception was granted by the National Government or those who work on commercial ships that comply with precautionary measures and protocols. “
Turkmenistan
Population: 5 million
The only non-island nation in the group, this Central Asian country simply did not register any cases – so, voilà! Not COVID! Whether it is really COVID free is up for debate.