The United Arab Emirates is among the few countries in the world to see the Rule of Law Index score increase this year. The UAE achievement is all the more remarkable as a majority of countries have seen rule of law being eroded this year.
The UAE ranks 37th out of 142 countries worldwide and 36th out of 46 among the high income countries in the index compiled by the World Justice Project.
Regionally, the UAE ranks 1st out of 9 countries in the Middle East and North Africa, followed by Kuwait, and Jordan. The three countries with the lowest scores in the region are Lebanon, Iran, and Egypt (136th globally).
Last year, three out of nine countries declined in the Middle East and North Africa. Of those three countries, two had also declined in the previous year.
This is the sixth consecutive Index marking global declines in the rule of law. This year alone, the rule of law declined in 59% of countries surveyed.
Since 2016, rule of law has fallen in 78% of countries studied. The rule of law factor to decline most between 2016 and 2023 is Fundamental Rights—down in 77% of countries.
Over the past seven years, Index scores for Constraints on Government Powers have fallen in 74% of countries. Around the world, legislatures, judiciaries, and civil society—including the media—have all lost ground on checking executive power, the Index shows.
These and other authoritarian trends continued in 2023, but they are slowing, with fewer countries declining in 2022 and 2023 than in earlier years.
Constraints on Government Powers fell in 56% of countries, compared to 58% in 2022 and 70% in 2021. Likewise, a smaller majority of countries saw overall rule of law declines in this year (59%) as compared to the last two (61% and 74%).
A smaller majority of countries (56%) also experienced a decline in Fundamental Rights again this year, compared to 2022 (66%).
On the other hand, declines in the functioning of justice systems are now expanding.
Two thirds of countries (66%) saw their Index scores for Civil Justice fall this year, up from 61% of countries last year. Greater justice delays and weaker enforcement are largely to blame. Meanwhile, scores for Criminal Justice also fell in slightly more countries this year (56%) than last year (55%).
United Arab Emirates bucked the trend and is among those that saw an improvement in its Civil Justice score.
“The world remains gripped by a rule of law recession characterized by executive overreach, curtailing of human rights, and justice systems that are failing to meet people’s needs,” said WJP co-founder and president William H. Neukom. “People around the world are paying the price.”
Globally, the top-ranked country in the 2023 WJP Rule of Law Index is Denmark, followed by Norway, Finland, Sweden, and Germany. The country with the lowest score is Venezuela, then Cambodia, Afghanistan, Haiti, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Also published on Medium.
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