Press freedom in RP declines considerably, says Freedom House

WASHINGTON – A number of emerging democracies including the Philippines  have suffered considerable declines in press freedom over the last five years, Freedom House reported.

In its latest Freedom of the Press report which assesses the degree of print, broadcast, and Internet freedom in every country in the world, the US-based international non-government organization said of 195 countries and territories examined in 2008, a total of 70 were rated free, 61 were rated partly free and 64 were rated not free.

Released in advance of World Press Freedom Day today, the report shows a seventh straight year of decline in global media freedom, with twice as many losses than gains.

“The journalism profession today is up against the ropes and fighting to stay alive,” said Freedom House executive director Jennifer Windsor.

“The press is democracy’s first defense and its vulnerability has enormous implications for democracy if journalists are not able to carry out their traditional watchdog role,” she added.

A key trend in the study, according to a Freedom House press statement, is that established democracies with traditionally open media are not immune to restricting media freedom.

The statement said over the last five years a number of emerging democracies have suffered considerable declines in press freedom including the Philippines, Thailand, Mexico, Argentina, Peru and Senegal.

In the 2009 report released on Friday, not one of the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was deemed to have a free press.

Three – the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand – were rated partly free while the rest – Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar – were rated not free.

A consolation prize for the Philippines was that it was the highest placed ASEAN member in the table of global press freedom rankings and had the best rating – 45 points.

It ranked in 96th place among 195 countries in 2008 compared with a ranking of 97th place among 136 countries the previous year.

Each country in the rankings receives a numerical rating from 0 (the most free) to 100 (the least free) which serves as the basis for an overall press freedom designation of free, partly free, or not free.

Ratings are based on three categories – the legal environment in which media outlets operate, political influences on reporting and access to information and economic pressures on content and the dissemination of news.

Iceland at the top of the latest rankings had a rating of 9 points while North Korea at the bottom of the rankings had a rating of 98 points.

The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists has listed the Philippines as one of 14 deadly countries in the past year for journalists.

In a recent report, it said at least 24 journalist murders have gone unsolved in the past decade.

“This pervasive climate of impunity has led to repeated attacks on the press, with renewed levels of violence recorded in 2008,” it added. –Jose Katigbak STAR Washington Bureau, Philippine Star