Freedom House once again labels Uzbekistan as 'Not Free' in its annual report

The international human rights organization, Freedom House, released its customary yearly report detailing the degree of freedom across the globe’s nation-states. In the latest index, Uzbekistan found itself among the 'Not Free' nations, managing to secure a mere 12 out of 100 points.

Political rights in Uzbekistan were evaluated at 2 points out of 40, and civil liberties at 10 points out of 60, totaling 12 points.

Additionally, regarding internet freedom, Uzbekistan claimed 25th place out of 100 countries with 'Not Free' internet.

Finland topped the ranking with a perfect score of 100 points. It was followed by New Zealand and Sweden, both scoring 99 points. The lowest results were recorded for Tibet (0 points), Syria, and South Sudan (1 point each).

Other Central Asian countries — Turkmenistan (2 points), Tajikistan (5 points), Kazakhstan (23 points), and Kyrgyzstan (27 points) — are also classified as 'Not Free'.

Freedom House's traditional study this year covered 195 countries and 15 territories. It is noted that over the past year, freedom levels have diminished in 52 countries, while improvements were observed in only 21.

Merely 20% of the world's population lives in 'free' countries, whereas the majority inhabit nations considered 'partly free' (42%) or 'Not Free' (38%).

According to the researchers, the global level of freedom has been in decline for 18 consecutive years.