Cape Verde is the freest country in Africa.
Featured image: Frame "Freedom I” by plastic artist Xesko.
The Freedom House report says that Cape Verde is the freest. Next comes Sao Tome and Principe. Angola is “Not Free”. Guinea-Bissau is “Partly Free”. And worst of all is Equatorial Guinea.
Cape Verde was considered the freest African country in Africa by the Non-Governmental Organization Freedom House, also ahead of Portugal in the global ranking, with Equatorial Guinea in the worst position among Portuguese-speaking countries.
“Cape Verde is a stable democracy with competitive elections and periodic transfers of power between rival parties”.
"Civil liberties are generally protected, but access to justice is hampered by an overly bureaucratic judicial system, and crime remains a concern."
Write the activists in the description of the country, which received a score of 92 points out of a possible 100.
Freedom House Rankings
the ranking it analyzes all the countries in the world, and again places the European Nordic countries at the top of the list of the freest, as has been the habit in recent years.
Still on Cape Verde, the NGO points out that “among the other main problems are the persistent inequalities for women and migrant workers”, which does not prevent the country from being the freest among Africans, followed by São Tomé and Príncipe, with 84 points, and Ghana with 80 points.
About the Portuguese-speaking archipelago that maintains last year's classification, like Cape Verde, Freedom House writes that the elections are regular and competitive, with “multiple transfers of power” without problems.
"Civil liberties are generally respected, but poverty and corruption have weakened institutions and contributed to dysfunctions in the justice system."
The activists say, further noting that:
"Threats to judicial independence have been a growing concern in recent years."
In the ranking of Portuguese-speaking African countries, after Cape Verde and São Tomé and Príncipe, come Mozambique and Guinea-Bissau, both with 43 points, with Mozambique maintaining the score, and Guinea-Bissau dropping one point compared to the report by the last year.
“The incumbent party is in power before and after the first multi-party elections in 2004, which allowed it to establish significant control over state institutions”.
Says Freedom House, referring to the Mozambique Liberation Front (Frelimo).
In the analysis, the activists recall that “the opposition contested the results of the last elections, and its armed faction maintained a low-level conflict against government forces until a truce signed in 2016”.
The situation of insecurity and violence in the north of the country also deserves a comment, with Freedom House saying that “hundreds of thousands of people have been internally displaced due to the Islamic insurgency” and adding that the country “also struggles with corruption” and warning that “journalists who report on corruption and other sensitive issues risk violent attacks”.
Guinea-Bissau
Guinea-Bissau, for its part, is classified as Partly Free, and the political system “has been hampered in recent years by divisions between the President and Parliament, and within the largest political party”, the African Party for the Independence of Guinea. and Cape Verde (PAIGC).
A positive note is given to civil liberties, which Freedom House says have "gradually improved" in recent years, following a 2012 coup d'état, "although police continue to disrupt some demonstrations".
Corruption in Guinea-Bissau, he concludes, "is a major problem that has been amplified by organized crime activity, including drug trafficking."
In the penultimate place among Portuguese-speaking African countries is Angola, the largest Portuguese-speaking economy in Africa and the second largest oil producer in sub-Saharan Africa.
Angola and Equatorial Guinea
Angola, like Equatorial Guinea, is classified as “Not Free”. Angola received only 30 points, one less than last year.
"Angola has been led by the same party since independence, and the authorities have systematically cracked down on political dissent."
The Freedom House report adds:
"Corruption, violations of procedural rules and abuses by security forces remain common."
For these activists, the arrival of João Lourenço to power in 2017 led to a “relaxation of some restrictions on the press and civil society, but this was reversed and the challenges persist”.
Equatorial Guinea, the most recent country to join the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries, is among the worst positions in the ranking, ahead only of South Sudan, Eritrea and Western Sahara.
With a score of 5 points out of a possible 100 and the classification of Not Free, the country led by Teodoro Obiang holds “regular elections that are neither free nor fair” that maintains “a highly repressive regime since 1979”.
The wealth guaranteed by oil and political power “is concentrated in the hands of the President's family” and the Government “often detains the few opponents who are still in the country, represses civil society groups, and censors journalists”.
In addition, “the judiciary is under presidential control and security forces engage in torture and other violence with impunity”, concludes the Freedom House report.
Conclusion
If, on the one hand, Cape Verde is better, on the other hand, the remaining PALOP countries are worse off, in particular Angola, with the ruinous government of João Lourenço.
It would be expected that the PALOP would take this report very seriously, look at what is going on within them and draw lessons from their forms of governance.
What do you think of this report? It seems that only Cape Verde escapes, does corruption in Africa have no limits? We want to know your opinion, do not hesitate to comment and if you liked the article, share and give a “like/like”.
By: Manuel de Almeida
Picture: © 2015 Xesko
