Freedom by the Numbers
ASCF Report, 3.3.26
Our previous issue pointed to troubling trendlines at home and abroad in relation to the state of freedom, concluding that the key to arresting these trends is to help our neighbors recognize that the rule of law, free government and free exchange deliver better outcomes than rule by control, conformity and coercion. This issue makes that case by comparing similar countries with different economic-political systems across various measures of overall national health.
The measures we’re using include: political freedom (Freedom House); economic freedom (Fraser Institute’s Economic Freedom of the World); personal liberty (Fraser Institute’s Human Freedom Index, which enfolds religious liberty); property rights (Property Rights Alliance); happiness (Gallup’s World Happiness Report); per capita GDP (World Population Review); life expectancy (UN); environmental quality (Center for Environmental Law and Policy); corruption levels (Transparency International); commitment to the rule of law (World Bank); women’s empowerment (Institute for Women, Peace and Security); and children’s health/wellbeing (World Bank/UN).
South Korea and North Korea
There’s no better proof of the superiority of freedom than the Korean Peninsula—one nationality divided into two political-economic systems. One is free and connected to the world, the other enslaved and isolated. The difference is breathtaking.
-political freedom: South Korea Free; North Korea Not Free
-economic freedom: South Korea 38th, North Korea unmeasured
-personal liberty: South Korea 35th, North Korea unmeasured
-property rights: South Korea 28th, North Korea unmeasured
-happiness: South Korea 59th, North Korea unmeasured
-per capita GDP: South Korea $44,621, North Korea $1,716
-life expectancy: South Korea 83.5, North Korea 72.8
-environment: South Korea 63rd, North Korea unmeasured
-corruption: South Korea 32nd, North Korea 174th
-rule of law: South Korea 28th, North Korea 183rd
-women’s empowerment: South Korea 33rd, North Korea unmeasured
-children’s health/wellbeing: South Korea 2nd, North Korea 112th
Taiwan and China
As with the Koreas, Taiwan and China share the same language, ethnicity and history, but they have very different political-economic systems. Taiwan’s pro-freedom institutions have transformed the island into a healthy democracy and a vibrant economy.
-political freedom: Taiwan Free, China Not Free
-economic freedom: Taiwan 7th, China 108th
-personal liberty: Taiwan 14th, China 149th
-property rights: Taiwan 16th, China 47th
-happiness: Taiwan 26th, China 72nd
-per capita GDP: Taiwan $55,724, China $17,192
-life expectancy: Taiwan 81, China 77.4
-environment: Taiwan 74th, China 160th
-corruption: Taiwan 25th, China 66th
-rule of law: Taiwan 24th, China 84th
-women’s empowerment: Taiwan unmeasured, China 89th
-children’s health/wellbeing: Taiwan unmeasured, China 43rd
U.S. and China
Xi envisions refashioning the liberal-democratic order in China’s image and aspires to dislodge America from its global leadership role. This should give the Free World pause. A made-in-China international order would look very different from today’s.
-political freedom: U.S. Free, China Not Free
-economic freedom: U.S. 5th, China 108th
-personal liberty: U.S. 15th, China 149th
-property rights: U.S. 13th, China 47th
-happiness: U.S. 16th, China 72nd
-per capita GDP: U.S. $63,416, China $17,192
-life expectancy: U.S. 79.1, China 77.4
-environment: U.S. 43rd, China 160th
-corruption: U.S. 27th, China 66th
-rule of law: U.S. 22nd, China 84th
-women’s empowerment: U.S. 21st, China 89th
-children’s health/wellbeing: U.S. 39th, China 43rd
U.S. and Russia
Putin is literally trying to roll back the Free World—and the calendar—by returning to might-makes-right imperialism and “l’etat c’est moi” governance.
-political freedom: U.S. Free, Russia Not Free
-economic freedom: U.S. 5th, Russia 148th
-personal liberty: U.S. 15th, Russia 152nd
-property rights: U.S. 13th, Russia 85th
-happiness: U.S. 16th, Russia 80th
-per capita GDP: U.S. $63,416, Russia $27,903
-life expectancy: U.S. 79.1, Russia 72.9
-environment: U.S. 43rd, Russia 112th
-corruption: U.S. 27th, Russia 136th
-rule of law: U.S. 22nd, Russia 152nd
-women’s empowerment: U.S. 21st, Russia 53rd
-children’s health/wellbeing: U.S. 39th, Russia 79th
Lithuania and Russia
Putin claims things were better when Lithuania—and all of Eastern Europe—were under Moscow’s heel. His neighbors would beg to differ; the numbers illustrate why.
-political freedom: Lithuania Free, Russia Not Free
-economic freedom: Lithuania 33rd, Russia 148th
-personal liberty: Lithuania 26th, Russia 152nd
-property rights: Lithuania 36th, Russia 85th
-happiness: Lithuania 34th, Russia 80th
-per capita GDP: Lithuania $38,824, Russia $27,903
-life expectancy: Lithuania 76.4, Russia 72.9
-environment: Lithuania 31st, Russia 112th
-corruption: Lithuania 34th, Russia 136th
-rule of law: Lithuania 30th, Russia 152nd
-women’s empowerment: Lithuania 30th, Russia 53rd
-children’s health/wellbeing: Lithuania 41st, Russia 79th
Mexico and Venezuela
Mexico is anything but a model of economic and political freedom, but it’s light-years ahead of Venezuela. Even though Venezuela, like Mexico, is among the most resource-blessed countries on earth—with a 1,750-mile tropical coastline, 300 billion barrels of oil and 201 trillion cubic feet of natural gas—it is impoverished because Chavez and Maduro chose coercion and control over freedom. (Although the Trump administration removed Maduro, it left the Chavez-Maduro regime in place.)
-political freedom: Mexico Partly Free, Venezuela Not Free
-economic freedom: Mexico 70th, Venezuela 165th
-personal liberty: Mexico 91st, Venezuela 159th
-property rights: Mexico 77th, Venezuela 129th
-happiness: Mexico 46th, Venezuela 108th
-per capita GDP: Mexico $19,130, Venezuela $5,178
-life expectancy: Mexico 75.4, Venezuela 72.3
-environment: Mexico 73rd, Venezuela 67th
-corruption: Mexico 124th, Venezuela 177th
-rule of law: Mexico 146th, Venezuela 192nd
-women’s empowerment: Mexico 88th, Venezuela 71st
-children’s health/wellbeing: Mexico 88th, Venezuela 107th
Venezuela and Venezuela
Perhaps a more revealing comparison is Venezuela before and after Chavez plunged the country into strongman governance and centrally-planned economics. Half of Venezuelans live below the poverty rate. Venezuela’s inflation rate hovers around 200 percent. Six million Venezuelans have fled since 2014. It pays to recall that Venezuela is the victim not of war or natural disaster, but of freedom-destroying policies. As the Fraser Institute’s Matthew Mitchell observes, “In 1970, Venezuelans were the wealthiest people in Latin America…with annual incomes comparable to those of the Finns and the Japanese.” But in the wake of the Chavez-Maduro regime, “The average Venezuelan earns one-third of what the average Latin American earns and one-seventh of what the Japanese and the Finns make.” In 1970, Venezuela ranked 13th in the world on economic freedom; today, it ranks 159th.
-political freedom: before Chavez Free, today Not Free
-economic freedom: in 1997 (before Chavez) 92nd, today 159th
-per capita GDP: $8,120 before Chavez, $5,178 today
-life expectancy: before Chavez 72.1, 72.3 today (in that span, the world average jumped from 65.4 to 73.6)
-corruption: before Chavez 44th, today 177th
Dominican Republic and Haiti
The Dominican Republic and Haiti share the same island. Yet they have very different political-economic institutions.
-political freedom: D.R. Partly Free, Haiti Not Free
-economic freedom: D.R. 47th, Haiti 120th
-personal liberty: D.R. 41st, Haiti 80th
-property rights: D.R. 87th, Haiti 127th
-happiness: D.R. 69th, Haiti unmeasured
-per capita GDP: D.R. $18,608, Haiti $2,916
-life expectancy: D.R. 74.6, Haiti 64.9
-environment: D.R. 89th, Haiti 173rd
-corruption: D.R. 128th, Haiti 164th
-rule of law: D.R. 93rd, Haiti 174th
-women’s empowerment: D.R. 71st, Haiti 142nd
-children’s health/wellbeing: D.R. 115th, Haiti 151st
Panama and Cuba
These Caribbean Sea neighbors—one a communist dictatorship, the other a free-market democracy—have taken very different paths over the past 60 years.
-political freedom: Panama Free, Cuba Not Free
-economic freedom: Panama 27th, Cuba 175th
-personal liberty: Panama 40th, Cuba unmeasured
-property rights: Panama 68th, Cuba unmeasured
-happiness: Panama 37th, Cuba unmeasured
-per capita GDP: Panama $27,003, Cuba $12,600
-life expectancy: Panama 79.1, Cuba 79.8
-environment: Panama 47th, Cuba 60th
-corruption: Panama 105th, Cuba 64th
-rule of law: Panama 105th, Cuba unmeasured
-women’s empowerment: Panama 83rd, Cuba unmeasured
-children’s health/wellbeing: Panama 102nd, Cuba 46th
Israel and Iran
These two poles of the Middle East offer dramatically different models. One is an Islamist theocracy that governs by coercion, demands conformity and micromanages economic activity. The other is an exponent of political and religious pluralism, consensus-based government, and free-market economics.
-political freedom: Israel Free, Iran Not Free
-economic freedom: Israel 39th, Iran 161st
-personal liberty: Israel 57th, Iran 164th
-property rights: Israel 25th, Iran 113th
-happiness: Israel 9th, Iran 110th
-per capita GDP: Israel $40,547, Iran $13,073
-life expectancy: Israel 83.4, Iran 77.3
-environment: Israel 57th, Iran 133rd
-corruption: Israel 36th, Iran 150th
-rule of law: Israel 33rd, Iran 158th
-women’s empowerment: Israel 27th, Iran 125th
-children’s health/wellbeing: Israel 24th, Iran 63rd
Botswana and Zimbabwe
These neighbors are strikingly different due to their political-economic institutions. Fraser Institute’s Fred McMahon notes, Botswana “started poorer than the average sub-Saharan nation in 1960 and is now richer than the average.”
-political freedom: Botswana Free, Zimbabwe Not Free
-economic freedom: Botswana 69th, Zimbabwe 164th
-personal liberty: Botswana 62nd, Zimbabwe 146th
-property rights: Botswana 56th, Zimbabwe 124th
-happiness: Botswana 142nd, Zimbabwe 144th
-per capita GDP: Botswana $16,893, Zimbabwe $2,622
-life expectancy: Botswana 69.8, Zimbabwe 62.1
-environment: Botswana 35th, Zimbabwe 69th
-corruption: Botswana 45th, Zimbabwe 157th
-rule of law: Botswana 58th, Zimbabwe 175th
-women’s empowerment: Botswana 118th, Zimbabwe 85th
-children’s health/wellbeing: Botswana 106th, Zimbabwe 146th
Positive
In short, it is governance, policies, and political and economic institutions—rule of law, property rights, majority rule with minority rights, free exchange—that produce free and healthy nation-states. It is not a function of good luck, good neighbors, demographics or resources.
These thumbnail comparisons are not exhaustive, but they remind us that freedom makes a positive difference in the lives of individuals and in the health of nations. Its absence shackles individuals and corrodes the nations in which they live. If we ignore these truths, the world will continue to grow less free—and more dangerous.