Organisation Freedom House published on its site the least free countries where human rights are not observed.
Freedom House published results of researches on situation with political rights and civil freedom worldwide. There 194 states and 14 so-called "territories in the list. 89 countries from them are considered free, 58 - semifree, other - not free.
The following countries have the worst mark (seven from seven possible) on freedom scale: Burma, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Turkmenia, Uzbekistan, Eritrea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea and Equatorial Guinea. In these countries according to report data, the state supervises private life of citizens, independent organisations and political opposition are forbidden or suppressed.
Rating 6,5 on freedom scale (the higher the mark, less free is the country) was received by: Belarus, Chad, China, Cuba, Guinea, Laos, Saudi Arabia and Syria. Southern Ossetia and Western Sahara are also included into this group. "These countries and territories offer rather limited possibilities for freedom of speech, severely oppresses political opposition, there's censorship there", - is said in the report.
Russia - among not free. It got 6 on political rights scale and 5 - on a civil freedom.
"It, of course, is not at such low level as in Turkmenia and Uzbekistan or South Ossetia. There are elections held in Russia but it is impossible to call them fair and free. The rights of minority in Russia are not observed. Position with freedom of press in Russia is very bad. Work of non-governmental, public organisations is extremely complicated and limited, if the government sees opponent in them. At last corruption prospers at all levels of the Russian government and in a private sector. On all these parametres Russia cannot be considered as free country though it's not one off the worst", "Radio Freedom" informs.
- Certainly, evaluation of Freedom House is rather limited by criteria, - editor-in-chief of FORUM.msk Anatoly Baranov considers. - Let's say, it doesn't take into consideration degree of economic dependence, on this parameter those countries which are registered today as quite free will not have such iridescent ratings. Such country as the USSR on this indicator which is related to internal freedom of a person would have quite good rating though by the criteria mentioned above the Soviet Union, of course, also would be not on the tope. The Russian Federation, having lost internal freedom connected with economic independence of the majority of citizens, has got nothing in the sphere of traditional liberal freedom - we will say, Belarus or Cuba could only seem less free but they will give a head start to Russia in the question of confidence in the future. Well, against events on May, 31st place in this rating looks quite "deserved" by Russia and even somehow hopeless.
