Syria

23 million people
2,750 USD GNI (PPP)
Internet:
Not Free
Press:
Not Free
Not Free

News & Updates

The capability of repressive governments to monitor users of mobile phones and block access to internet content is far beyond levels realized by users and presents significant risks for user privacy and safety, according to a new report released today by Freedom House and the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG). This is a serious problem in countries that lack the rule of law and where civil liberties are not respected.

Washington Post
July 13, 2012

The U.S. can't afford to stay on the sidelines in Syria, write Charles Dunne, David J. Kramer and William H. Taft IV.

Read the op-ed here.

The West may be using the Kremlin's intransigence as an excuse to do nothing in Syria, write David Kramer and Lilia Shevtsova in The American Interest.

The massacre of 116 people in Houla, Syria over the weekend is a clear indication that the Annan plan has failed. Freedom House calls for stronger international action, including by the UN Security Council (UNSC) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), to intervene and prevent further atrocities against the Syrian people.  We applaud the governments of Australia, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and the United States, for their decision to expel Syrian ambassadors residing in their countries.

Signature Reports

Special Reports

Worst of the Worst 2011: The World's Most Repressive Societies

Freedom House has prepared this special report entitled Worst of the Worst: The World’s Most Repressive Societies, as a companion to its annual survey on the state of global political rights and civil liberties, Freedom in the World. The special report provides summary country reports, tables, and graphical information on the countries that receive the lowest combined ratings for political rights and civil liberties in Freedom in the World, and whose citizens endure systematic and pervasive human rights violations.

Worst of the Worst 2007

Sudan, North Korea and Uzbekistan are prominent among the most repressive regimes in the world, according to a report released by Freedom House.  The study, “The Worst of the Worst: The World's Most Repressive Societies 2007,” named seventeen countries with the worst records for political rights and civil liberties, and pointed to thirteen countries which have been on the list for five years or more.

Programs

Freedom House supports human rights and civil society organizations and activists in mitigating the risks of digital attacks.

Freedom House works with Syrian political activists to build their capacity for non-violent struggle, strategy development, effective advocacy, and safe and secure communications skills.