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The Ministry of Tourism and Culture last night (May 13) released a video on Twitter, promoting the measures it has taken to protect tourists from Covid-19.
In the video, all tourism personnel are said to be vaccinated and are seen wearing masks that read "Enjoy, I'm vaccinated" in what the ministry calls "double protection for tourists."
"Our guests call it peace of mind. Come and enjoy the safe haven: the Turkish Riviera!" says the video.
The video caused a backlash among social media users and opposition politicians, who accused the government of humiliating the citizens. They also pointed out the country's vaccine shortage as less than a third of the it population has received at least one vaccine jab so far.
Democracy and Progress (DEVA) Party Chair Ali Babacan wrote, "We don't deserve a government that views its own citizens so worthless. They left this nation without vaccines."
Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu wrote, "Finally, we have a ministry that humiliates its own nation."
Some people likened the government's treatment of tourism staff to animals, sharing photos of cows and dogs with signs on their ears showing that they are vaccinated.
The ministry had to delete the video after reactions but some users re-uploaded it:
Turizm Bakanlığı'nın Türkiye tanıtım hesabında turizm çalışanlarının #Aşılıyım baskılı maske takacağına dair görüntüler içeren bir reklam yayınlandı ve sonra tepkilerden kaldırıldı. Turizm emekçilerimize şu iğrençliği yapmasaydınız. “Ben aşılıyım”ne demek ya?#TurizmBakanıİstifa pic.twitter.com/inhHkcJAtn
— Çetin Metin Karakoç (@CetinMetinKrkc) May 14, 2021
Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu received similar criticism last week after saying "We'll vaccinate everyone that tourists can see."
Turkey doesn't require foreign tourists to be vaccinated or tested for Covid-19 and exempts them from lockdowns, which means they are free to roam and enjoy beaches.
Many social media users, including politicians, called for the resignation of Minister of Tourism Nuri Ersoy, a leading businessperson in the tourism sector who owns luxury hotels and tour and booking companies. A hashtag demanding his resignation and another, "Sorry, I'm a Turk," became trending topics on Twitter.
Enjoy i'm vaccinated.#aşılıyım#TuerkuemOEzuerDilerim #TurizmBakanıİstifa #turkumozurdilerim @MehmetNuriErsoy #türkümözürdilerim pic.twitter.com/AveL9AssRF
— hakan diler (@hakan_diler) May 14, 2021
Ahead of the current 17-day lockdown, which is due to end on early Monday (May 17), Ersoy had said "If our predictions come true, the number of cases will drop below 5,000 by May 17."
CLICK - A not-so-full lockdown with an alcohol ban and vaccine shortage
Turkey reported more than 37,000 coronavirus cases on April 29, the day when the lockdown started and daily cases have dropped below 12,000 as of yesterday.
The number of daily tests has also dropped by about 25 percent since then.
The opposition has accused the government of imposing a lockdown not to protect citizens but to draw more tourists to the country ahead of the summer. Currently, more than 10 million people are exempt from the lockdown, according to the Ministry of Interior.
hey don't shoot i'm vaccinated #TürkümÖzürDilerim pic.twitter.com/PNpGxgKT8a
— Jimmy McGill (@Avacadostoyevsk) May 13, 2021
(TP/VK)
