The state of political rights and civil liberties in Bangladesh has witnessed a decline in the last five years and the country still falls in the status of “partly free”, according to a report by Freedom House.
With an aggregate score of 39 out of 100, the Freedom in the World-2021 report has categorised Bangladesh’s freedom status as “Partly Free”.
Bangladesh also scored 39 in 2020 and it scored 41 in 2019, 45 in 2018 and 47 in 2017, showing a trend of declining political rights and civil liberties.
Freedom House, a US-based independent watchdog revealed the report this evening titled, “Freedom in the World: Democracy under siege”. It is an annual study of political rights and civil liberties worldwide.
Freedom House rates people’s access to political rights and civil liberties in 210 countries and territories through its annual Freedom in the World report. Individual freedoms — ranging from the right to vote to freedom of expression and equality before the law — can be affected by state or non-state actors, the report said.
Bangladesh scored 15 out of 40 in the political rights category while it scored 24 out of 60 in civil liberties category.
Among the South Asian countries only Afghanistan, with a score of 27, falls in the status of not free. India, Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Maldives fall in the status of “partly free”, but they all scored more than Bangladesh. India scored 67, Bhutan 61, Sri Lanka and Nepal 56 and Maldives 40.
Pakistan scored 37.
Countries that scored between 1 and 34 fall in the status of “not free”, those that range between 35 and 71 fall in the “partly free” category and countries that scored over 71 fall in the “free” category.
Finland, Norway and Sweden scored 100 out of 100 in the report.