Iran at the Bottom of Latest Press Freedom Index in the World

In the latest press freedom rankings among 180 countries in the world, Norway ranked first as the freest and safest country for media, while Iran dropped to position 170 with a decline of six places compared to the previous year.

The “World Press Freedom Index” is a report prepared annually by Reporters Without Borders. The latest rankings were released on Thursday, April 19.

First place in this ranking has been held by Norway for the third consecutive year, Finland is in second place, and Sweden ranks third.

Iran, along with 9 other countries, is at the bottom of the index and is among the 10 countries that suppress press freedom.

Iran: Continuation of “40 Years of Lies”

Reporters Without Borders stated in the latest World Press Freedom Index regarding the media situation in Iran: “The Islamic regime, through widespread and extensive control of media, has not stopped harassing journalists, citizen-journalists, and independent media.”

In this report, emphasizing that “Iran has had one of the most repressive governments for journalists over the past 40 years,” it referenced a previous report by the organization published last month under the title “40 Years of Lies.”

In that report, Reporters Without Borders announced that it had obtained an official document from the judiciary of the Islamic Republic showing that at least 860 journalists and citizen-journalists were detained, imprisoned, and even executed between 1979 and 2009.

In the newly released index, noting that “systematic suppression of media and journalists” continues in Iran, it states: The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Intelligence Organization of the Guards have focused their suppression more on citizen-journalists who are attempting to fight for free information and democratic changes on social networks.

According to this report, among imprisoned media personnel currently, two-thirds are citizen-journalists who “are paying the heavy price of Tehran’s regime’s crackdown for independent journalism.”

Warning About “Hate Speech Against Journalists”

Reporters Without Borders stated in the introduction to its annual report that this year’s index “shows that hate speech against journalists fuels increased violence against them.”

According to the report, while “authoritarian governments continue their pressure on media, the number of safe countries where journalists can perform their duties with security and freedom has also declined.”

In the World Press Freedom Index, countries are ranked in five statuses: satisfactory situation (white), acceptable situation (yellow), somewhat difficult situation (orange), difficult situation (red), and very grave situation (black).

The United States ranked 48th in the latest World Press Freedom Index, showing a decline of 3 places compared to the previous year. Reporters Without Borders cited “Donald Trump’s positions” and “the emergence of a hostile environment against journalists” as the reason for this decline.

Reporters Without Borders also referenced a shooting last June at the office of a newspaper in Annapolis, Maryland, which left 5 dead and several injured.

Among the 10 countries at the bottom of the index, Iran ranks 170th, followed by Laos, Saudi Arabia, Djibouti, Syria, Sudan, Vietnam, China, North Korea, and Turkmenistan.

Saudi Arabia, with a decline of three places compared to the previous year, ranked 172nd in this year’s index.

The state of press freedom in Saudi Arabia, like Iran, was reported as black (very grave), and Reporters Without Borders specifically referenced the killing of Jamal Khashoggi.

Source: Radio Farda