According to freedom house is a non-profit organization from the United States that focuses on advancing political rights and civil liberties worldwide. It compiles and publishes research and reports that shape political debates in the United States and abroad on the state of democracy and freedoms.
The group’s flagship report, Freedom in the World, assesses each country’s degree of political rights and civil liberties. It is published annually.
About Freedom House
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Freedom House is an American non-profit organization that works for democracy and human rights around the world. The organization was founded in 1941 and serves as a bipartisan supporter of freedom worldwide. It is currently headquartered in Washington, D.C.
The organization works to promote democracy and political freedom worldwide through research and advocacy. Its signature report, Freedom in the World, assesses the state of political rights in 192 countries and 14 territories. The organization also publishes other reports on civil liberties, press freedom, and conditions in former communist states.
According to the organization, its mission is “to advance human rights and democratic values, especially in emerging democracies.” The organization also strives to protect the right of all people to participate in the political process. In addition, the organization supports and trains young leaders to nonviolently protest for democracy and human rights.
While many people associate Freedom House with its role as a key supporter of the United States in the World War II war against fascism, its history is rooted in civil rights activism and fighting for democracy. Initially, the organization was a bipartisan organization that worked for both parties, as well as against totalitarian Communism.
In the post-Cold War era, however, Freedom House has taken a strong left turn in its reporting and assessment of free nations. The organization’s 2018 world report, in particular, shows a clear pattern of partisan bias against mainstream conservative parties.
Moreover, its reports are biased against public-policy issues that many people of goodwill in democratic societies find deeply troubling — immigration, border security, labor relations, criminal justice, social issues such as marriage and abortion, and more.
Although Freedom House remains a vital source of information about democracy and political freedom worldwide, the organization’s recent reports have become increasingly biased against free societies. In addition, the organization’s funding has shifted away from federal grants to private foundations. The largest grant in 2012, for example, was from the MacArthur Foundation.
Freedom in the World
Freedom is the ability to live a life of independence, to be free from fear and to express yourself without being censored. It is the foundation of human development and human happiness.
According to the Declaration of Human Rights, everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and expression. This includes the right to have a political opinion, the freedom of religion and the freedom of peaceful assembly.
However, this freedom is often under threat in many countries. Governments may use their power to stifle dissent, especially when they believe it threatens national security, religious belief or public order.
In recent years, authorities have clamped down on critics – both online and offline – through detention, arrests, hate speech and cybersecurity laws, Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPS), surveillance technologies, and attacks on media. UNESCO estimates that 455 journalists were killed in the course of their work between 2016 and 2021.
The Swedish Government has a long-standing commitment to promoting freedom and democracy around the world as a means of delivering on the Sustainable Development Goals. We work with a variety of governments, NGOs, and other partners to promote a thriving society that is based on the principles of equality, justice, and human dignity.
A free and vibrant media is essential to a healthy democracy and to ensuring that citizens have the information they need to make informed decisions. As a result, preserving the rights of journalists and media workers is a top priority for us.
Freedom in the Americas
Freedom House is an American nongovernmental organization (NGO) that works to analyze freedom challenges worldwide. The organization was founded in 1941 and its board members include people with diverse backgrounds such as journalists, business and labor leaders, former governmental officials, and academics.
Throughout its history, Freedom House has played an influential role in the fight for freedom. During World War II, the organization was a major rallying point for Americans who were concerned about Nazism and totalitarian Communism. It also helped promote democracy in countries like Cuba, Venezuela, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Egypt, and Russia.
Today, Freedom House is an important international watchdog that rates the freedom of 193 countries and 14 territories. The organization also publishes numerous reports and studies that focus on the state of freedom in different regions of the world.
A country or territory is rated as free, partially free, or not free depending on its political rights and civil liberties. The designations are based on the scores of several political scientists who surveyed various aspects of freedom in each country or territory.
The organization is primarily funded by the United States government and also receives money from private grantmaking foundations. The NGO reported total revenue of just over $40 million in 2018.
Although Freedom House does a good job in analyzing the state of freedom around the world, it consistently favors left-of-center democrats over mainstream conservative parties on issue after issue. The organization’s bias and partisanship are especially glaring in discussions of controversial public-policy issues such as immigration, refugees, border security, and labor relations.
Freedom in the Asia-Pacific
Despite a series of political and economic setbacks, the Asia-Pacific continues to rank high on the list of freedom loving nations. The region may be a hotbed of democracy but it also has its share of repressive and autocratic governments. In the name of national security, repressive governments have made some inroads into a number of civil liberties including speech, expression, and association. The latest edition of Freedom in the World surveyed 195 countries and 15 related and disputed territories.
The report uses a variety of methods to measure a wide range of human rights issues. A team of analysts based at the Washington, DC office conducts research using in-country contacts, fieldwork, nongovernmental and government reports, news articles, and open-source material. These data points are then used to produce the annual flagship report on the state of freedom in the world.
Among all the many accolades, the most notable award goes to Freedom in the World’s grand prize, which includes a special prize for an innovative idea to help address one of the top human rights concerns.
Freedom in Europe
According to Freedom House, a country or territory can be considered free if it meets certain standards. These standards are based on the idea that freedom is best achieved in liberal democratic societies. These standards include the right to vote, freedom of expression, and the rule of law.
In addition to evaluating countries and territories on the basis of these standards, Freedom House also rates individual freedoms that can be affected by state or nonstate actors, such as armed groups and insurgents. We assess these individual freedoms in 210 countries and territories in our annual report, Freedom in the World.
The report’s methodology is rooted in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states that all people should have access to all civil and political rights. Its results are used by a range of stakeholders worldwide, including policymakers, the media, international development agencies, and tech companies, as well as activists working for change around the world.
To rate a country’s or territory’s political rights and civil liberties, a Freedom House analyst awards it 0 to 4 points on 25 of the 27 scoring indicators (see Methodology). The 25 normal indicators are scored together as a single score, while an optional indicator that subtracts points from the Political Rights total in cases of ethnic cleansing or other types of forced demographic change is given a separate score.
During the coverage period, a Freedom House analyst gathers information from a variety of sources in each country or territory. This includes field research, in-country contacts, government and nongovernmental reports, news articles, and other open-source materials. The analyst’s conclusions are vetted by teams of expert advisers and by Freedom House staff, who are ultimately responsible for any final decisions regarding the status of countries or territories.
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