MOZAMBIQUE RISES IN PRESS FREEDOM RANKINGS

Mozambique has risen by over 30 places on the Press Freedom Index compiled every year by the Paris-based organisation Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF – Reporters without Borders).In the 2011-12 index, published in January, Mozambique is rated 66th out of 179 countries. In the 2010 index it was in 98th position out of 178 countries, and in 2009 it was number 83 out of 175 countries. The RSF index assigns points for violations of media freedoms. The fewer points a country is awarded, the freer its press. For this purpose, RSF uses a questionnaire that enquires about such matters as the murder, torture, imprisonment and harassment of journalists, censorship of media, impunity of those responsible for such violations, self-censorship, the ability of the media to investigate and criticize, the legal framework for the media, and financial pressures on the media. The questionnaire is sent to 18 other freedom of expression organisations across the globe, to RSF’s own network of150 correspondents, and a variety of journalists, researchers and human rights activists. Up until 2011, the best score a country could obtain was zero. But in the latest index, RSF has also attributed negative points, so that the countries where the media is deemed freest score less than zero. Top of the list are Norway and Finland on minus 10, followed by Estonia and Holland (-9), Austria (-8), and Iceland and Luxemburg (-7). Two African countries have minus scores – Cape Verde (-6) and Namibia (-2).There seems no limit to how bad a score can get. Bottom of the list this time is Eritrea with a score of 142, followed closely by North Korea (141), and Turkmenistan (140.67). RSF describes these three countries as “absolute dictatorships that permit no civil liberties”.Mozambique’s score is 21.5, an improvement on the previous year’s 26.5. Mozambique outranks several European countries, including two European Union members – Greece (ranked at number 70, with a score of 24) and Bulgaria (at number 90, with a score of 29).The RSF rankings for all members of the Southern African Development Community are as follows (with their score in brackets):

Namibia – 20 (-2)
Tanzania – 34 (6)
South Africa – 42 (12)
Botswana – 42 (12)
Mauritius – 54 (17)
Lesotho – 63 (21)
Mozambique – 66 (21.5)
Seychelles – 73 (25)
Madagascar – 84 (29.5)
Zambia – 86 (30)
Zimbabwe – 117 (55)
Angola – 132 (58.43)
Swaziland – 144 (67)
Democratic Republic of Congo – 145 (67.67)
Malawi – 146 (68)

The self-proclaimed champion of press freedom, the United States, does not score particularly well. It is ranked 47, with a score of 14 – beaten by countries such as Namibia, South Africa, Botswana, Tanzania and Ghana.