Less than half of the world’s population lived in democracy in 2021, only 21 countries out of 165 enjoy “full democracy”, a status that both Spain and Chile lost, according to a study by the British group The Economist published on Thursday.
According to this study by the research and analysis section of the group (EIU), the democracy index in 2021 went from 5.37 in 2020 to 5.28; that is, the largest annual drop since 2010.
According to the document, Spain went from having the status of “full democracy” to “deficient democracy” in 2021, a group to which France, the United States, Israel and South Africa also belong.
And Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay and Tunisia – the country that recorded the steepest drop – were relegated from “deficient democracies” to the status of “hybrid regimes”. Bangladesh, Senegal, Ukraine and Hong Kong also belong to this category.
“The results reflect the negative impact of the pandemic on democracy and freedom in the world for the second year in a row, with the considerable extension of state power and the erosion of individual freedoms,” according to the study.
Sweden, Luxembourg, and the United Kingdom (which drops two positions and approaches the failing democracies) are in the first category of the ranking, as are Costa Rica, Uruguay, South Korea, Japan, and Mauritius.
Among the “authoritarian regimes” are Nicaragua, Cuba, Venezuela, Algeria, Egypt, Russia, Rwanda, Vietnam and China.
At the bottom of the list, Afghanistan, retaken six months ago by the Taliban, became the country ranked as the least democratic in the world. (I)
Source: Eluniverso
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
