Freedom House: Democracy Ratings for Most Countries

A new report warns that democratic values are weakening in countries around the world.

The report found that values such as fair elections and freedom of the press have worsened in each of the past 12
years.

The findings are from Freedom House, an American-based non-governmental organization.

Freedom House works in support of political freedom and democracy worldwide. While the group is independent,
some of its money comes from the United States government.

For the new report, researchers studied information about conditions in 195 countries over the past year. Freedom
House rated 88 of those countries as “free.” Fifty-eight others received a “partly free” rating. It identified 49
countries as “not free.”

Arch Puddington is a researcher with Freedom House. He said that the study confirmed a drop in political freedoms
in each of the past 12 years.

“For the 12th consecutive year, freedom was on the decline across the globe. And by that we mean that there are
more countries, in this case, in the case of 2017, many more countries that showed declines in freedom than showed
improvements...”

North America

Freedom House reported a weakening of the United States as a leader of democracy in 2017. It said that America’s
standing was affected, in part, by reports of Russian involvement in the 2016 presidential election. U.S. government
officials are investigating possible ties between Russia and aides to then presidential candidate Donald Trump.

“There are problems with the elections that you don’t find in most well-established democracies,” said Arch
Puddington. He noted the large amounts of money spent on U.S. election campaigns and state laws making voting
more difficult.

In written comments, Freedom House pointed to ethical concerns facing the administration of President Donald
Trump. It said they include the Trump family’s business ties and the possibility for conflicts of interest, as well as the
president’s decision not to release information about his taxes.

The administration has noted an ongoing investigation by tax experts as a reason for not releasing Trump's tax
returns.

Asia

The Freedom House report noted the intensification of repression under Chinese leader Xi Jinping as a reason for
China’s generally downward move and "not free" rating.

“We’ve noticed efforts by China to influence the way other countries deal with China, talk about China, what
scholars write about China, what journalists write about China,” said Puddington.

He added that the report noted “a kind of creeping policy” of trying to expand Chinese restrictions to China’s
neighbors and other countries, such as Australia, Canada, and even the United States.

Yet Freedom House researchers praised what they consider continued signs of political development for South Korea
and the island of Taiwan.

The report described Myanmar, also known as Burma, as "partly free.” Researchers said their findings on the country
are mixed. They noted its move from military rule toward democracy and a worsening humanitarian crisis, following
the movement of Rohingya Muslims to neighboring Bangladesh.

Latin America
Even with economic and political unrest in Nicaragua and Venezuela, Freedom House welcomed political
developments in other Latin American countries.

In 2017, Lenin Moreno took office as Ecuador’s president. Freedom House noted how Moreno has cancelled some of
the measures that former president Rafael Correa put in place.

Puddington praised Moreno for showing a willingness to have serious discussions with reformists and to take legal
action against officials accused of corruption.

The report noted increased U.S. involvement with Cuba’s government and the Cuban people. Yet Freedom House
rated Cuba as “not free” in the report. It said freedom of the press and open political debate are two areas in need
of improvement.

Middle East

The Freedom House report also gave "not free" ratings to Afghanistan and Iraq.

“It doesn't necessarily mean that the country is moving in the wrong direction or in the right direction,” noted Arch
Puddington. “It just means that there are a lot of things going on in that country. And we that anticipate there will be
changes in the next year.”

Observers say progress toward democratic elections and effective civilian governments could signal major
developments for both countries.

Africa

Following the ouster of Robert Mugabe as Zimbabwe’s longtime leader, Freedom House listed the country as "partly
free."

Arch Puddington explained the rating.

“Zimbabwe declined in our scores for 2017, but this was largely due to the fact that, you know, President Mugabe
was pushed out by non-democratic means, and he was succeeded through non-democratic means..."
A blessing in disguise a good thing that seemed bad at first

A dime a dozen Something common

Beat around the bush Avoid saying what you mean, usually because it is
uncomfortable
Better late than never Better to arrive late than not to come at all

Bite the bullet To get something over with because it is inevitable

Break a leg Good luck

Call it a day Stop working on something

Cut somebody some slack Don't be so critical

Cutting corners Doing something poorly in order to save time or money

Easy does it Slow down

Get out of hand Get out of control

Get something out of your system Do the thing you've been wanting to do so you can move on

Get your act together Work better or leave

Give someone the benefit of the doubt Trust what someone says

Go back to the drawing board Start over

Hang in there Don't give up

Hit the sack Go to sleep

It's not rocket science It's not complicated

Let someone off the hook To not hold someone responsible for something

Make a long story short Tell something briefly

Miss the boat It's too late

No pain, no gain You have to work for what you want

On the ball Doing a good job

Pull someone's leg To joke with someone

Pull yourself together Calm down

So far so good Things are going well so far

Speak of the devil The person we were just talking about showed up!

That's the last straw My patience has run out

The best of both worlds An ideal situation

Time flies when you're having fun You don't notice how long something lasts when it's fun

To get bent out of shape To get upset

To make matters worse Make a problem worse

Under the weather Sick

We'll cross that bridge when we come to it Let's not talk about that problem right now

Wrap your head around something Understand something complicated

You can say that again That's true, I agree

Idiom Meaning

A little learning is a dangerous thing People who don't understand something fully are dangerous

A snowball effect Events have momentum and build upon each other

A snowball's chance in hell No chance at all

A stitch in time saves nine Fix the problem now because it will get worse later

A storm in a teacup A big fuss about a small problem

An apple a day keeps the doctor away Apples are good for you

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure You can prevent a problem with little effort. Fixing it later is
harder.
As right as rain Perfect

Bolt from the blue Something that happened without warning

Burn bridges Destroy relationships

Calm before the storm Something bad is coming, but right now it's calm

Come rain or shine No matter what

Curiosity killed the cat Stop asking questions

Cut the mustard Do a good job

Don't beat a dead horse Move on, this subject is over

Every dog has his day Everyone gets a chance at least once

Familiarity breeds contempt The better you know someone the less you like him

Fit as a fiddle In good health

Fortune favours the bold Take risks

Get a second wind Have more energy after having been tired

Get wind of something Hear news of something secret

Go down in flames Fail spectacularly

Haste makes waste You'll make mistakes if you rush through something

Have your head in the clouds Not be concentrating

He who laughs last laughs loudest I'll get you back for what you did

Hear something straight from the horse's mouth Hear something from the person involved

He's not playing with a full deck He's dumb

He's off his rocker He's crazy

He's sitting on the fence He can't make up his mind

It is a poor workman who blames his tools If you can't do the job, don't blame it on others

It is always darkest before the dawn Things are going to get better

It takes two to tango One person alone isn't responsible. Both people are involved.

Jump on the bandwagon Follow a trend, do what everyone else is doing

Know which way the wind is blowing Understand the situation (usually negative)

Leave no stone unturned Look everywhere

Let sleeping dogs lie Stop discussing an issue

Like riding a bicycle Something you never forget how to do

Like two peas in a pod They're always together

Make hay while the sun shines Take advantage of a good situation

On cloud nine Very happy

Once bitten, twice shy You're more cautious when you've been hurt before

Out of the frying pan and into the fire Things are going from bad to worse

Run like the wind Run fast

Shape up or ship out Work better or leave

Snowed under Busy

That ship has sailed It's too late

The pot calling the kettle black Someone criticizing someone else he is just as bad

There are clouds on the horizon Trouble is coming

Those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones People who are morally questionable shouldn't criticize others

Through thick and thin In good times and in bad times

Time is money Work quickly

Waste not, want not Don't waste things and you'll always have enough

We see eye to eye We agree

Weather the storm Go through something difficult

Well begun is half done Getting a good start is important

When it rains it pours Everything is going wrong at once

You can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar You'll get what you want by being nice

You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink You can't force someone to make the right decision

You can't make an omelet without breaking some eggs There's always a cost to doing something