SARAJEVO (Bosnia and Herzegovina), December 18 (SeeNews) – Bosnia and Herzegovina is the least free country in Southeast Europe, according to the 2017 Freedom Barometer published by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom.
Out of 30 European and Central Asian countries included in the barometer, Bosnia and Herzegovina took up the 25th position with an overall score of 52.23, down 0.55 from a year earlier, the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom said.
The foundation measures freedoms based on 10 main variables applied to three different categories - political freedom, rule of law and economic freedom.
In terms of political freedom, Bosnia and Herzegovina got a score of 6.07 out of 10 for free and fair election, down 0.36 from 2016. The country's score in the absence of veto players variable remained unchanged at 3.33, while its score in the press freedom variable edged down 0.10 points to 4.90.
The foundation commented that all recent elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina were organised in democratic manner, although certain technical shortcomings and fraudulent activities threatened to endanger freedom and fairness of the process.
It noted that the decision making process in the country is inefficient and often interrupted by politicians themselves, who opt for vetoing legislation for personal, clanship or political party benefit. The media scene was deemed as highly pluralistic and diverse, with freedom of the media only partly upheld in practice.
In the category of rule of law, Bosnia scored 3.34 out of 10 in the variable independence of the judiciary, up 0.34 points from a year earlier. In the corruption variable, the country' score was boosted by 0.10 to 3.90, while in protection of human rights it gained 0.09 points to 6.17.
The foundation noted that Bosnia's courts are often at odds and contradict each others rulings. It added that political interference is also present, while the backlog of cases is huge.
Corruption in the country is at a very high level, the foundation found, adding that it is facilitated by the huge public sector, high public spending and unclear division of responsibilities, plus poor coordination between anti-corruption actors.
The heaviest burden on human rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina is its recent past, with many unresolved war crimes and divergent interpretations thereof, the foundation explained. Hate speech might be found everywhere and extremism is in the rise, it added.
In terms of economic freedom, the foundation gave Bosnia a score of 4.44 in the security of property rights variable, down 0.35 points. The score is based on the fact that private property rights are not adequately protected, while the judiciary is weak and it often succumbs to out of court influences by politicians and powerful private interests.
In the size of government element, the foundation scored Bosnia 5.86 points, up 0.01 from last year, commenting that the size of government is high for a country with such a low level of economic development.
Bosnia's regulation of credit, labour and business scored 5.56 points, down 0.24, based on the finding that its business environment suffers from excessive red tape and prevalent corruptive activities, the foundation said.
Bosnia scored best in the variable freedom to trade internationally, earning 8.66 points, down a slight 0.04 from last year. The foundation noted that freedom to trade internationally is generally respected, with mostly low tariffs.
Bosnia and Herzegovina has been part of the Freedom Barometer since its inception in 2013. Back then, Bosnia's score was 55.2 points.