Uploaded January 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
The latest Human Freedom Index (covering 2023 data) analyzes 165 jurisdictions using 87 indicators of personal and economic freedom.
Read more: fee.org/articles/the-times-call-for-courage
At the very bottom sit Myanmar (161), Sudan (162), Yemen (162), Iran (164), and the Syrian Arab Republic (165).
These are places where coercive constraint is most entrenched across rule of law, security, movement, expression, association, and economic freedom. But this is not only a “bottom-five” story.
The report shows a broader slide: the global average fell from 6.97 (2019) to 6.81 (2023), meaning 89.6% of the world’s population experienced declining freedom over that period.
The latest Human Freedom Index (covering 2023 data) analyzes 165 jurisdictions using 87 indicators of personal and economic freedom.
Read more: fee.org/articles/the-times-call-for-courage
At the very bottom sit Myanmar (161), Sudan (162), Yemen (162), Iran (164), and the Syrian Arab Republic (165).
These are places where coercive constraint is most entrenched across rule of law, security, movement, expression, association, and economic freedom. But this is not only a “bottom-five” story.
The report shows a broader slide: the global average fell from 6.97 (2019) to 6.81 (2023), meaning 89.6% of the world’s population experienced declining freedom over that period.
