PHL remains among weakest in rule of law

PHILIPPINE rule of law has remained one of the weakest in East Asia and the Pacific, according to an annual survey of the World Justice Project (WJP).

The 2020 edition of WJP’s Rule of Law Index puts the Philippines at the 91st spot out of 128 countries globally, unchanged from the previous year. Its score was also unchanged at 0.47 on a 0 to 1 scale, where 1 indicates strongest adherence to the rule of law.

The score puts the Philippines at 13th out of 15 countries in East Asia and the Pacific (unchanged as in the previous year), and 13th out of 30 among lower-middleincome countries (compared to 14th previously).

WJP said the change in rankings “was calculated by comparing the 126 countries and jurisdictions measured in the 2019 index with the rankings of the same 126 countries and jurisdictions in 2020, exclusive of two new additions to the 2020 index [Kosovo and The Gambia].”

Denmark, Norway, and Finland were the top three overall performers, while the bottom three performers were the Democratic Republic of the Congo (126th), Cambodia (127th) and Venezuela (128th).

Meanwhile, New Zealand (seventh overall), Australia (11th), and Singapore (12th) were the top three countries with the highest rule of law scores in the East Asia and the Pacific region. On the other hand, the Philippines, Myanmar (112th), and Cambodia (127th) made up the region’s bottom three.

“More countries declined than improved in overall rule of law performance for a third year in a row, continuing a negative slide toward weakening and stagnating rule of law around the world. The majority of countries showing deteriorating rule of law in the 2020 Index also declined in the previous year, demonstrating a persistent downward trend,” the WJP said in its press release.