In its annual report released on March 4, the Washington-based human rights watchdog, Freedom House, ranked Tajikistan among “Not Free” countries.
Moreover, of the 49 countries designated as “Not Free,” Tajikistan, which gained 9 scores out of 100 possible, ranked among the 10 worst.
Of the 49 countries listed as “Not Free”, Syria Eritrea, South Sudan, Turkmenistan, North Korea, Equatorial Guinea, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Libya and Tajikistan have the worst aggregate scores for political rights and civil liberties, according to the report.
The country-by-country review, titled A Leaderless Struggle For Democracy, said that countries that suffered setbacks in 2019 outnumbered those making gains by nearly two to one, marking the 14th consecutive year of deterioration in global freedom. During this period, 25 of the world’s 41 established democracies reportedly experienced net losses.
The report also found an alarming global erosion in governments’ commitment to pluralism, a defining feature of liberal democracy.
Of the 195 countries assessed, 83 (43 percent) were rated “Free,” 63 (32 percent) were “Partly Free,” and 49 (25 percent) were “Not Free.” The share of “Free” countries has reportedly declined by 3 percentage points over the last decade, while the percentage of “Partly Free” and “Not Free” countries rose by two and one points, respectively.
