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02/10/2005
Freedom
Recently, a number of writers and historians have been citing a
Freedom House survey of global political patterns so I thought
I’d take a look myself. Certainly President Bush has been
making note of much of the following as well.
“Freedom in the World” examines global events from Dec. 1,
2003 through Nov. 30, 2004.
Of the 89 countries described as Free, their 2.8 billion inhabitants
(44 percent of the world’s population) enjoy a broad range of
rights. 54 countries representing 1.2 billion people (19 percent)
are considered Partly Free. Political rights and civil liberties are
more limited in these countries, in which corruption, dominant
ruling parties, or, in some cases, ethnic or religious strife are
often the norm. The other 49 countries are Not Free. The 2.4
billion inhabitants (37 percent) of these, nearly three-fifths of
whom live in China, are denied most basic political rights and
civil liberties.
The survey revealed that Russia was the only country to register
a negative category change in 2004, moving from Partly Free to
Not Free. Freedom House Executive Director, Jennifer Windsor
concluded, “Russia’s step backwards into the Not Free category
is the culmination of a growing trend under President Vladimir
Putin to concentrate political authority, harass and intimidate the
media, and politicize the country’s law-enforcement system.
These moves mark a dangerous and disturbing drift toward
authoritarianism in Russia, made more worrisome by President
Putin’s recent heavy-handed meddling in political developments
in neighboring countries such as Ukraine.”
Among the other findings:
--Of the world’s 192 states, 119 are electoral democracies (89
Free and 30 Partly Free), an increase of 2 since 2003. [I don’t
know where they would put Iraq at this point.] While these
states are not all rated Free, all provide considerable political
space and media access for opposition movements and allow for
elections that meet minimum international standards of ballot
secrecy and vote tabulation.
--Over the last 15 years, the number of electoral democracies has
risen from 69 out of 167 (41 percent) to 119 out of 192 (62
percent). On average during that time frame, an additional 3
states have adopted minimal standards for free and fair elections
each year.
--Freedom further consolidated in Central Europe. Five of the
new EU countries – the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary,
Poland and Slovakia – achieved the highest possible survey
rating: 1 for political rights and 1 for civil liberties.
--In Western Europe, 24 states are rated Free and one, Turkey, is
rated Partly Free.
--In the Americas, 24 countries are Free, 9 are Partly Free, and 2
(Haiti and Cuba) are Not Free.
--In the Asia-Pacific region, 17 countries are Free, 11 are Partly
Free, and 11 are Not Free.
--In Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, 12
countries are Free, 7 are Partly Free, and 8 are Not Free.
--In the Middle East and North Africa, one country (Israel) is
Free, 5 countries are Partly Free and 12 are Not Free.
--In sub-Saharan Africa, 11 countries are Free, 21 are Partly
Free, and 16 are Not Free.
Of the 49 countries rated Not Free, 19 received the worst
possible numerical rating (7) for political rights. The broadest
restrictions on political activity take place in
Belarus, Burma, Cuba, China, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti,
Iraq, Laos, Libya, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Swaziland,
Syria, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, and Zimbabwe.
Terrorism and Democracy
According to a Freedom House analysis of global terrorist
attacks of a five year period from 1999-2003, 70 percent of all
attributable deaths by terrorism were perpetrated by terrorists and
terrorist movements originating in Not Free countries. By
contrast, only 8 percent of global fatalities from terrorism were
perpetrated by terrorists and groupings with origins in the free
world. “This suggests that the expansion of democracy and
freedom is an important component in the international effort to
rid the world of the terrorist scourge,” said Adrian Karatnycky,
principal analyst of Freedom in the World.
Various ratings:
* “1” represents the most free and “7” the least free
**PR and CL stand for Political Rights and Civil Liberties
Afghanistan 5 PR 6 CL
Argentina 2 and 2
Australia 1 and 1
Brazil 2 and 3
Chile 1 and 1
China 7 and 6
Colombia 4 and 4
Cuba 7 and 7
France 1 and 1
Germany 1 and 1
Haiti 7 and 6
Hungary 1 and 1
India 2 and 3
Iran 6 and 6
Iraq 7 and 5
Israel 1 and 3
Japan 1 and 2
Kuwait 4 and 5
Libya 7 and 7
Mexico 2 and 2
New Zealand 1 and 1
North Korea 7 and 7
Pakistan 6 and 5
Poland 1 and 1
Russia 6 and 5
Saudi Arabia 7 and 7
Singapore 5 and 4
Slovakia 1 and 1
South Africa 1 and 2
South Korea 1 and 2
Syria 7 and 7
Taiwan 2 and 1
Thailand 2 and 3
Turkey 3 and 3
Ukraine 4 and 3
United Kingdom 1 and 1
United States 1 and 1
Venezuela 3 and 4
Vietnam 7 and 6
Zimbabwe 7 and 6
Freedom House was founded over sixty years ago by Eleanor
Roosevelt, Wendell Wilkie and other Americans concerned with
the mounting threats to peace and democracy.
Source: Freedomhouse.org
Hott Spotts will return Feb. 17.
Brian Trumbore
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