Taiwan has won the distinction of being listed as having Asia’s freest media environment for the second consecutive year in the annual Freedom House report.
The US non-governmental organization’s Freedom of the Press 2008 report released on Tuesday in advance of World Press Freedom Day on Saturday lists Taiwan as one of only three Asian countries with “free” media.
“The survey shows that freedom of speech in Taiwan is highly regarded by Freedom House, and that is an honor for all of Taiwan’s people,” Government Information Office Minister Shieh Jhy-wey (謝志偉) said yesterday.
In the face of a decline in global press freedom over the past six straight years, Taiwan has continued moving up the Freedom House rankings, Shieh said.
Of the 195 countries and territories included in the rankings, Taiwan was listed 32nd, up one place from last year. This year’s score for Taiwan was its best ever. Taiwan’s ranking was the highest in Asia, ahead of Japan at 35 and South Korea at 67 — the only three Asian countries where the report lists the media as “free.”
Hong Kong was also ranked 67th.
Freedom House rated each country’s legal, political and economic environment, as well as the degree to which each of these factors affected media freedom.
In its draft report, Freedom House attributed Taiwan’s free media environment to its commitment to judicial independence, economic freedom and a highly competitive media market.
“The Constitution provides for freedom of speech and of the press, and the government generally respects these rights in practice. Taiwanese media are vigorous and lively, regularly criticizing government policy and top officials,” the report said.
In the survey, 72 countries, or 37 percent, were rated as “free,” while 59 nations, or 30 percent, were described as “partly free” and 64 countries, or 33 percent, as “not free.”
China continued to be rated as “not free,” with a global ranking of 181, the same as the previous year.
Freedom House said that China last year tightened media control and Internet restrictions in preparation for the 17th Communist Party Congress, and imprisoned more online journalists and bloggers, despite moderate breakthroughs for investigative journalism and regulations providing somewhat greater access to foreign correspondents.
“In general, journalists who attempted to investigate or report on controversial issues, criticized the [Chinese] Communist Party or presented a perspective contrary to state propaganda continued to suffer harassment, job loss, abuse and detention,” the report said.
Global media freedom watchdogs estimate that at least 29 journalists and 51 cyber-dissidents were in prison in China at the end of last year, more than any other country, while at least nine journalists and online writers were detained during the year over information they had published on the Internet, it said.
Myanmar, Cuba, Libya, North Korea and Turkmenistan, which remained among the worst-rated countries on the list, were joined by Eritrea last year, while a crackdown in Myanmar worsened that country’s already repressive media environment, leaving its score second only to that of North Korea, Freedom House said.
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday lavished US President Donald Trump with praise and vows of a “golden age” of ties on his visit to Tokyo, before inking a deal with Washington aimed at securing critical minerals. Takaichi — Japan’s first female prime minister — pulled out all the stops for Trump in her opening test on the international stage and even announced that she would nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize, the White House said. Trump has become increasingly focused on the Nobel since his return to power in January and claims to have ended several conflicts around the world,
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
GLOBAL PROJECT: Underseas cables ‘are the nervous system of democratic connectivity,’ which is under stress, Member of the European Parliament Rihards Kols said The government yesterday launched an initiative to promote global cooperation on improved security of undersea cables, following reported disruptions of such cables near Taiwan and around the world. The Management Initiative on International Undersea Cables aims to “bring together stakeholders, align standards, promote best practices and turn shared concerns into beneficial cooperation,” Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said at a seminar in Taipei. The project would be known as “RISK,” an acronym for risk mitigation, information sharing, systemic reform and knowledge building, he said at the seminar, titled “Taiwan-Europe Subsea Cable Security Cooperation Forum.” Taiwan sits at a vital junction on
RSS