Washington, D.C. — Eritrea has been ranked last in an annual index measuring press freedom around the world. The index was released Tuesday by Reporters Without Borders, an organization that defends press freedom.
"There is nothing surprising about this," Reporters Without Borders said in a press release. "Even if we are not aware of all of the press freedom violations in North Korea and Turkmenistan, which are second and third from last, Eritrea deserves to be at the bottom."
Eritrea replaced North Korea in last place in a ranking of 169 countries. Five African countries - Ethiopia, Equatorial Guinea, Libya, Somalia, and Eritrea - ranked in the bottom 20 countries in the index. Mauritius and Namibia were the highest-ranking African countries, tied for 25th place. South Africa, Cape Verde, Togo, and Mauritania were also ranked in the top 50.
Reporters Without Borders used the release of the report to criticize governments that restrict press freedom, and saved its harshest words for the Eritrean government. Eritrea closed the private press in 2001, and it has been consistently criticized for this action by press freedom organizations.
Reporters Without Borders said that many Eritrean journalists have been sent off to prison camps, in which four journalists have died. "We have every reason to believe that others will suffer the same fate," the organization said.
Even though Ethiopia was ranked in the bottom 20, its ranking improved over last year's because of the acquittal of imprisoned journalists in the spring, and the release of opposition leaders from prison over the summer. Still, the organization criticized "the frequent imprisonment of journalists, the climate of self-censorship and the unclear status of political prisoners" in Ethiopia.
Reporters Without Borders also singled out cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Niger in its report.
In June in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, radio journalist Serge Maheshe was murdered while attempting to get into a United Nations vehicle. "The way the authorities handled the murder ... is indicative of the climate of impunity and injustice, one sustained by the government's open contempt for the press," Reporters Without Borders wrote in the report.
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In Niger, prominent journalist Moussa Kaka is facing a life sentence in prison for allegedly aiding a rebel group. According to the report, "Niger had been regarded as a country with significant problems, but now it is has taken the road of authoritarian regimes at the bottom of the index."
