WASHINGTON – According to the latest annual “Freedom in the World” report by Freedom House, in 2024 global freedom declined for the 19th consecutive year. When it comes to the Western Balkans Six, the decline in civic rights and liberties was recorded in Serbia, while the scores of the other countries in the region remained the same as last year’s or slightly increased. All these countries are still classified as “partly free”, and the corruption is cited as one of the major problems.
“Freedom in the World” includes scores and detailed country reports on political rights and civil liberties for 195 countries and 13 territories around the globe. Each country receives a numerical score from 100 (the freest) to 0 (the least free). Based on the scores, countries are divided into three categories: “free”, “partially free” and “non free”.
The best overall country scores are those of Finland (100), Sweden (99), New Zealand (99), Norway (99), Canada (97), Denmark (97), San Marino (97), the Netherlands (97), Ireland (97), and Luxembourg (97), while the countries with the worst overall scores are Turkmenistan (1), South Sudan (1), Sudan (2), Eritrea (3), North Korea (3), Central African Republic (5), Tajikistan (5), Equatorial Guinea (5), Syria (5), Afghanistan (6), Azerbaijan (7), Belarus (7), and Myanmar (7).
Montenegro ranks best in the region, followed by Albania, while Serbia sees the score decline
Montenegro ranks the best in the region, since it scored 69 index points, which is the same result as in the last year. According to the report: ”Montenegro is a home to dynamic media and civil society sectors, civil liberties and political freedoms are generally respected”.
Describing the situation in Montenegro, Freedom House states that “a new parliamentary majority and government were established following competitive elections in 2023, paving the way toward resolution of recent political instability”, underlying that “corruption in politics and in the judiciary remains a problem”.
Montenegro is followed by Albania, which scored 68 index points, and saw a slight improvement compared to the last year, when it received 67 index points.
“Albania has a record of competitive elections, though political parties are highly polarized and often organized around leading personalities. Religious freedom and freedom of assembly are generally respected. Corruption and bribery remain major problems, though the government is working to address corruption in the judiciary, Freedom House notes.
North Macedonia also scored 67 index points, which is the same result as in 2024. Freedom House stresses that the country “continues to struggle with corruption, and while the media and civil society participate in vigorous public discourse, journalists and activists face pressure and intimidation”.
Kosovo scored 60 index points, which is also the same result as in the previous year.
“Kosovo holds credible and relatively well-administered elections. Many public institutions are undermined by entrenched corruption, though there are signs that a new generation of politicians is moving to confront corrupt practices through judicial and administrative reforms”, the report states.
On the other hand, Serbia saw the score decline, going from 57 to 56 index points, as a result of the erosion of the political rights and civil liberties.
“Serbia is a parliamentary democracy with competitive multiparty elections, but in recent years the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) has steadily eroded political rights and civil liberties, putting pressure on independent media, the political opposition, and civil society organizations”, Freedom House underlines.
Finally, Bosnia and Herzegovina ranks worst in the region according to the report, although it saw a slight increase in the ranking – from 51 to 52 index points.
“Bosnia and Herzegovina is a highly decentralized parliamentary republic whose complex constitutional regime is embedded in the Dayton Peace Agreement, which ended the 1992–95 Bosnian War. Political affairs are characterized by severe partisan gridlock among nationalist leaders from the country’s Bosniak, Serb, and Croat communities. Political participation by citizens from other communities is extremely limited. Corruption remains a serious problem in the government and elsewhere in society”, the report states.