The 2019 edition of the World Justice Project’s annual Rule of Law Index placed the Philippines at the 90th spot out of 126 countries covered by the report, up three notches from the 2017-2018 list.
From the World Justice Project (WJP) website: “Each edition of the WJP Rule of Law Index relies on more than 110,000 household and expert surveys to measure how the rule of law is experienced and perceived in practical, everyday situations by the general public around the world.
Performance is assessed using 44 indicators across eight categories, each of which is scored and ranked globally and against regional and income peers: Constraints on Government Powers, Absence of Corruption, Open Government, Fundamental Rights, Order and Security, Regulatory Enforcement, Civil Justice and Criminal Justice.”
The Philippines being up three places since the previous report sounds good. However, there are mixed results in the individual categories. These are the eight broad measures and our global ranking: Constraints on Government Powers—71, Absence of Corruption—63, Open Government—51, Fundamental Rights—105, Order and Security—115, Regulatory Enforcement—83, Civil Justice—99 and Criminal Justice—113.
Further, nations are compared in their region (East Asia and Pacific) and by economic status (lower middle). The results from the following two indicators within the broad categories may come as a surprise. The Philippines ranks at the top, both regionally and in our economic class, for “Freedom of Expression” and “Right to Information.”
From WJP: “Freedom of Opinion and Expression are effectively guaranteed measures where an independent media, civil-society organizations, political parties and individuals are free to report and comment on government policies without fear of retaliation.” That certainly conflicts with what we are hearing in the news almost every day.
“Right to Information measures, where requests for information held by a government agency are granted, whether these requests are granted within a reasonable time period, if the information provided is pertinent and complete, and if requests for information are granted at a reasonable cost and without having to pay a bribe.” Again, this seems to be a contradiction from what is being commented on about our government.
Nonetheless, here is the purpose of our comments on the conclusions of the Rule of Law Index and why the press and media are sometimes a little lazy in providing complete information.
A report like this is based on opinions gathered from a survey, and the methodology is the key to the findings. In Manila, Cebu and Davao, 1,008 Filipinos were questioned, supplemented by the input of 24 experts, primarily attorneys.
While the opinions of the expert panel are current, the public survey was conducted in 2016. Of our neighbors, only Thailand’s results are from 2018; the rest (Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam) are from 2017.
It is not that the methodology or the results are flawed. But we can question how public opinion from 2016 is necessarily the same as in 2018. It is like looking at a two-year-old family photograph. Things change.