http://www.freedomhouse.org/media/pressrel/121801.htm
NEW STUDY DETAILS
ISLAMIC WORLD'S DEMOCRACY DEFICIT
Freedom House analysis shows rest of world has moved toward
greater freedom
NEW
YORK, December 18, 2001 -- In a major study released today, Freedom House concludes that
there is a dramatic, expanding gap in the levels of freedom and
democracy between Islamic countries and the rest of the world. The
study, Freedom in the World 2001-2002, finds that a non-Islamic
country is more than three times likely to be democratic than an
Islamic state.
"This freedom and democracy divide exists not only between Islamic
countries and the prosperous West," said Adrian Karatnycky,
Freedom House president and coordinator of the survey. "There is a
growing chasm between the Islamic community and the rest of world.
While most Western and non-western countries are moving towards
greater levels of freedom, the Islamic world is lagging behind.".
"In the wake of the terrorist attacks against the United States on
September 11, it is imperative that policymakers around the globe
give serious attention to the democracy gap in the Islamic world,"
said Freedom House chairman Bill Richardson.
In
the organization's annual survey, 86 countries representing 2.54
billion people (or 41.40 percent of the world's population)
receive a rating of Free. Their inhabitants enjoy a broad range of
rights. Fifty-eight countries representing 1.43 billion people
(23.25 percent) are considered Partly Free. Political rights and
civil liberties are more limited in these countries, in which
corruption, dominant ruling parties, and, in some cases, ethnic or
religious strife are often the norm. The survey finds that 48
countries representing 2.17 billion people (35.35 percent) fall
into the Not Free category. Inhabitants of these countries are
denied basic political rights and civil liberties.
This year's study yielded mixed results. Seventeen countries
registered significant gains in freedom, while another seventeen
registered setbacks in political rights and civil liberties. One
country, Peru, moved from Partly Free to Free, after open
democratic elections resulted in a victory for Alejandro Toledo.
Two countries, the Gambia and Mauritania, moved from Not Free to
Partly Free. Both countries demonstrated marked improvements in
their election procedures.
Trinidad and Tobago fell from Free to Partly Free amid a disputed
national election. Liberia and Zimbabwe declined from Partly Free
to Not Free amid widespread violence against political opponents
and civil society.
Islam: Trends in Freedom and Democracy:
The most revealing and relevant finding in this year's analysis is
the democracy deficit in the Islamic world, especially in its
Arabic core.
"The reality in much of the Islamic world is that democratic
voices are opposed not only by tyrannical regimes but also by
powerful Islamic political forces, some of them supported by the
power of the mosque, which often promotes antidemocratic and
anti-Western viewpoints," said Mr. Karatnycky.
Of
the world's 192 countries, 121 are electoral democracies. However,
only 11 of the 47 nations (23 percent) with an Islamic majority
have democratically elected governments. In the non-Islamic world,
which comprises 145 states, 110 are electoral democracies (75
percent). Therefore, a non-Islamic state is over three times more
likely to be democratic than an Islamic state. None of the 16 Arab
states of the Middle East and North Africa is a democracy.
In
addition to a democracy divide, there is a dramatic freedom
deficit between majority Islamic countries and the rest of the
world. Of the states with an Islamic majority, only one, Mali, is
rated Free. Eighteen are rated Partly Free, and 28 are considered
Not Free. By contrast, in the non-Islamic world, 85 countries are
Free, 40 are Partly Free, and 20 are Not Free.
The gap in freedom has only widened over the last twenty years.
While every other region of the world has registered significant
gains for democracy and freedom, the countries of the Islamic
world have experienced a significant increase in repression.
There are, however, bright spots. This year's analysis does not
imply an inherent incompatibility between the Islamic world and
democratic values. Democratically constituted governments, such as
those in India, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Nigeria, and Turkey, govern
countries with large Muslim populations. Indeed, today, the
majority of the world's Muslims live in electoral democracies. In
Bahrain, political reforms were begun after men and women voted in
a referendum. In Iran, a discernible democratic ferment is
challenging the restrictive measures imposed by the ruling
clerics..
Among
the study's principal findings
Countries rated Free account for $27.1 trillion of the world's
annual GDP and represent 87 percent of global economic activity.
By contrast, Partly Free countries account for $2.0 trillion in
output (6 percent), and Not Free countries produce $2.2 trillion
(7 percent).
At
the end of 2001, there are 121 electoral democracies out of 192
states (63 percent). At the end of 1987, there were just 66 out of
167 countries (40 percent).
In
the non-Islamic states of East-Central Europe and the former
Soviet Union, there are 11 Free countries. There is not a single
Free country among the countries in those regions with a majority
Islamic population.
Regional Trends
Democracy and freedom remain deeply entrenched in Western Europe,
with all 24 states rated Free.
Of
the 35 countries in the Americas, 32 are electoral democracies (91
percent); 23 are rated Free (66 percent), 10 Partly Free (28
percent), and two--Cuba and Haiti--are Not Free (6 percent).
In
East-Central Europe and the former Soviet Union, the picture is
bleaker. Nineteen of the 27 post-Communist states are electoral
democracies (70 percent), but only 11 are considered Free (41
percent). Ten are rated Partly Free (37 percent) and six Not Free
(22 percent). Of the 12 non-Baltic former Soviet republics, 6
countries are Partly Free, 6 are Not Free, and none are rated
Free.
Of
Africa's 53 nations, only 9 are Free (17 percent). Twenty-five are
Partly Free (47 percent), and 19 are Not Free (36 percent). Only
20 African nations are electoral democracies (38 percent).
In
Asia, 18 of the region's 39 countries are Free (46 percent), 10
are Partly Free (26 percent), and 11 are Not Free (28 percent).
Twenty-four of the region's polities are electoral democracies (62
percent).
Democracy and freedom remain the least rooted in the Middle East's
14 countries. Israel is the only country rated Free (7 percent).
Three states--Turkey, Jordan, and Kuwait--are Partly Free (21
percent), and 10 are Not Free (71 percent). Israel and Turkey are
the only electoral democracies (14 percent of the country total)
in the region.
Worst
of the Worst
This year's survey rates 48 states as Not Free. All deny their
citizens a broad range of basic freedoms. Of these nations, 28
have majority Islamic populations. Ten of the Not Free countries
received the lowest ratings for political rights and civil
liberties. Two--Cuba and North Korea--are one-party
Marxist-Leninist regimes. Seven--Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Saudi
Arabia, Sudan, Syria, and Turkmenistan--are majority Islamic
countries. Burma, under a military dictatorship, is the tenth
worst rated country. Two territories, Tibet and Chechnya, also
received the worst ratings.
