NOEL KING, HOST:
All right. So big parts of the world are locked down, but Nicaragua is not. The government says they've only had 10 cases and two deaths from COVID-19. World health officials and many Nicaraguans think the country isn't taking the threat seriously. Here's NPR's Carrie Kahn.
CARRIE KAHN, BYLINE: Nicaragua's government is giving this wash-your-hands jingle a lot of airtime on TV.
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UNIDENTIFIED SINGERS: (Singing in Spanish).
KAHN: But it's also encouraging families and friends to gather, like with this new spot about a mountain biking festival held just last weekend.
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UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: (Speaking Spanish).
KAHN: "We are here to support a healthy lifestyle," declares the event's government promoter.
Instead of discouraging public crowds, President Daniel Ortega's regime has been sponsoring everything from food festivals to beauty pageants, leaving many citizens worried.
DORA MARIA TELLEZ: (Speaking Spanish).
KAHN: "It's impossible to know the dimensions of the epidemic in Nicaragua," says Dora Maria Tellez, a staunch Ortega opponent who once served as his health minister. In fact, the government lowers the numbers of reported cases as each patient recovers, so Tellez and other activists are stepping in.
TELLEZ: (Speaking Spanish).
KAHN: She says, with help from informants in health clinics around the country, they estimate as many as 200 Nicaraguans have the virus. Neighboring Costa Rica has confirmed more than 600 cases and has closed its border with Nicaragua.
President Ortega, now 74, refuses to issue stay-at-home or self-distancing orders and actually dropped out of public view for more than a month. Last week, he reappeared to say there is no reason to shut down Nicaragua's economy.
PRESIDENT DANIEL ORTEGA: (Speaking Spanish).
KAHN: "If we stop producing, the country will disappear," he said. In a live broadcast, he called the pandemic a sign from God that the U.S. should spend less on atomic bombs and more on hospitals.
Nicaragua's lax measures have drawn a rare rebuke from the Pan American Health Organization and its director Carissa Etienne.
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CARISSA ETIENNE: We have concerns about the testing, contact tracing, about the reporting of cases.
KAHN: And the convening of large gathering, she said earlier this month. Despite the criticism, Nicaragua's public schools are back in session after the Easter break.
Carrie Kahn, NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
