The international human rights organization Freedom House has published its annual report Freedom on the Net 2024. It covers the period from June 2023 to May 2024.
According to the report, Kyrgyzstan received this year’s sharpest downgrade, compared to the previous year (-4 points). The republic scored 48 points out of 100 possible and was again included in the group of countries with «partially free» Internet (52 points in 2023).
«Internet freedom in Kyrgyzstan declined considerably during the coverage period, which was marked by a worrying escalation of the detentions of journalists, activists, and individuals critical of the government; the blocking of TikTok; and a broader crackdown on online media outlets,» authors of the report note.
The government has continued blocking websites under the Law on Protection from False Information. As of May 2024, 474 websites were blocked by a court decision. Most of them are blocked for allegedly hosting extremist content.
«The government forced news outlets to remove content during the coverage period under the Law on Protection from False Information. Journalists who work online have occasionally removed political content under threat of violence from unknown actors,» the report says.
Significant declines in Internet freedom were also registered in Azerbaijan (-3 points), Belarus (-3), Iraq (-3) and Zimbabwe (-3), while Zambia (+3) achieved the greatest improvement.
Kazakhstan scored 34 points, Belarus — 22, Russia — 20, Uzbekistan — 27, Georgia — 74, Armenia — 74.
Iceland and Estonia were recognized as leaders in the field of Internet freedom. The worst conditions for Internet freedom in the world are in China and Myanmar.
In general, as the authors of the report note, the level of Internet freedom around the world has continued to decline consistently over the past 14 years.
Among the main reasons affecting the level of freedom on the Internet are interference in elections and the growth of repression for free expression of opinions on the Internet.
According to the report, people were physically attacked or killed in retaliation for their online activities in a record high of at least 43 countries in 2023.
