Metro Manila, Philippines — The Philippines is still among the East Asia and Pacific countries with the weakest rule of law, ranking 13 out of 15 in the region, the World Justice Project (WJP) reported.
According to the Rule of Law Index 2023, the Philippines fell three positions from 2022, placing 100 out of 142 countries worldwide.
The independent and multidisciplinary organization added that the country had an overall score of 0.46, a 0.1 decrease from last year’s ranking
In 2021, the Philippines scored 0.46 and 0.47 in 2020, a notable change from its 0.53 score in 2015.
New Zealand (8th globally) topped the region at 0.83 while Cambodia (141 globally) had the lowest score of 0.31.
Data also showed that Denmark had the strongest rule of law across all countries with a score of 0.90 followed by Norway (0.89) and Finland (0.87).
Venezuela, meanwhile, bottomed the ranking at 0.26.
Here are the country’s scores and ranking globally in the following aspects:
Constraints on government powers: 93/142 (0.47)
Absence of corruption: 83/142 (0.43)
Open government: 79/142 (0.47)
Fundamental rights: 120/142 (0.40)
Order and security: 94/142 (0.67)
Regulatory enforcement: 84/142 (0.47)
Civil justice: 103/142 (0.45)
Criminal justice: 120/142 (0.31)
Between 2022 and 2023, WJP said the rule of law declined in 82 countries, while only 58 improved.
WJP’s Rule of Law Index evaluates and ranks countries across key rule of law indicators, including checks on government powers, corruption and transparency, fundamental and equal rights, open government, civic engagement, security, business regulation, and the functioning of regulatory, criminal, and civil justice systems.
