FILIPINOS have become less “free” as the Philippines slipped five notches in the Human Freedom Index (HFI) copublished by three foreign think tanks.
The Philippine was ranked 76th out of 162 economies in 2017, its lowest ranking in the index in four years. The country scored 6.88 out of a perfect score of 10, which is lower than the 6.98 score it posted in 2016.
The HFI, copublished by the Cato Institute, the Fraser Institute in Canada, and the Liberales Institut at the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom in Germany, ranks 162 countries based on 76 distinct indicators of personal, civil, and economic freedom, using data from 2008 to 2017.
“The HFI captures the degree to which people are free to enjoy important rights, such as freedom of speech, religion, association and assembly, and also measures freedom of movement, women’s freedoms, crime and violence, and legal discrimination against same-sex relationships,” the Cato Institute said in a statement.
On a scale of zero to 10, where 10 represents more freedom, the Philippines scored 7.32 in terms of economic freedom, higher than its 7.3 score in 2016, and 6.44 in personal freedom, lower than the 6.66 score in 2016.
Under personal freedom, the Philippines scored the lowest in “rule of law” with 3.4 out of 10. This was greatly affected by the 2.2 score out of 10 in procedural justice followed by criminal justice, 3.1 and civil justice, 4.7.
The country also posted a 6.7 out of 10 in security and safety, as well as identity and relationships. The Philippine performance in both indicators worsened in 2017 compared to 2016.
In terms of safety and security, the country’s score dived to 5.9 in 2017 from 7.6 in 2016 in terms of disappearance, conflict and terrorism.
In identity and relationships, the country scored zero in divorce. It may be noted that divorce is not yet allowed in the Philippines.
“With the rise of populism, nationalism, and hybrid forms of authoritarianism, people’s rights and freedoms are under assault in many corners of the globe. Because of their inherent value and their contribution to well-being, those freedoms deserve the strongest defense,” Cato Institute adjunct scholar and Fraser Institute senior fellow Tanja Porčnik said.
Freest, least free
However, in the region, the freest country is Singapore, which is ranked 30th globally followed by Cambodia (63), the Philippines (76), Indonesia (81) and Timor-Leste (86).
The least free country in the region is Myanmar (148), preceded by Pakistan (140) and Brunei Darussalam (tied for 140), and Bangladesh (138).
Globally, the top economies are New Zealand, Switzerland, Hong Kong, Canada and Australia, while the bottom economy is Syria followed by Venezuela, Yemen, Sudan and Iraq.
A total of 61 countries increased their overall freedom ratings from 2008 to 2017, while 79 countries posted declines in their freedom ratings.
Around 16 percent of the world’s population lives in the top quartile of nations in the index, while 35 percent lives in the bottom quartile of countries that have the lowest levels of freedom.
The authors also found that of the 12 major categories that make up the index, all but five have seen some deterioration. Religion, identity and relationships, and rule of law saw the largest decreases since 2008, while Sound Money saw the largest improvement.
Countries that have high personal freedom tend to exhibit high economic freedom. The freest countries in the world by quartile enjoy much greater income per person ($40,171) compared to those in the least-free quartile ($15,721).
In addition, the authors found a strong correlation between human freedom and democracy, with Hong Kong as an outlier in this regard.