Guyana has moved up in the press freedom rankings for the third straight year, moving to 49th out of the 180 countries listed on 2020 World Press Freedom Index even as the Reporters without Borders (RSF) assessment has deemed the upcoming decade a “decisive” one for journalism.
Guyana has moved up by two places since 2019, when it was listed 51st out of the 180 countries.
Norway tops the list, while North Korea is ranked the lowest.
Other countries in the Caribbean region, such as Jamaica (6), Suriname (20), and Trinidad and Tobago (36), are ranked above Guyana. (The lower the number the higher the level of press freedom.)
The RSF assessment stated that although Guyana’s constitution guarantees freedom of expression and the right to information, those in authority would often time use pieces of legislation to silence “opposition” journalists.
The legislation used, according to the report, include anti-defamation laws, which pave the way for fines and penalties of up to two years imprisonment.
“The members of the media regulatory body are appointed directly by the president, which can hamper the freedom of certain newsrooms by depriving them of their broadcasting license,” the report stated.
It noted that to date, journalists are still facing harassment, whether it’s through trials, suspensions and intimidation.
Globally, RSF said, the World Press Freedom Index which assesses journalism situation in the 180 countries listed on an annual basis highlights that the next ten years are likely to be a “decisive decade” for press freedom due to the crises affecting the future of journalism. These were described as geopolitical (aggressiveness of authoritarian models), technological (lack of democratic guarantees), democratic (polarization, repressive policies), confidence (suspicion, even hatred towards the news media) and economic (impoverishment of quality journalism).
In addition to these crisis, RSF said there is now a health crisis—the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
“We are entering a decisive decade for journalism, linked to concomitant crises which affect the future of journalism, declares the Secretary General of RSF, Christophe Deloire. The coronavirus epidemic provides an illustration of the negative factors for the right to reliable information, and it is even a multiplier,” it stated.
It was further revealed that there is an obvious correlation between the suppression of press freedom during the coronavirus epidemic and the place of countries in the World Ranking.
