Freedom House is a United States-based international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on democracy, political freedom and human rights. The date of establishment or date of founding of an Institution is the date on which that institution chooses to claim as its starting point Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. A research institute is an establishment endowed for doing Research. A think tank (also called a policy institute) is an organization institute corporation or group that conducts Research and engages in advocacy in areas such Headquarters (HQ denotes the location where most if not all of the important functions of an organization are concentrated Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Peter Ackerman is the founding chair of the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict, the managing director of Rockport Capital Incorporated and currently chair of the Employment is a Contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other being the employee. A website (alternatively web site or Web site, a back-construction from the Proper noun World Wide Web) is a collection of Web pages The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is held completely by the people under a free electoral system Political freedom is the absence of interference with the sovereignty of an individual by the use of coercion or aggression Human rights refers to the "basic Rights and freedoms to which all humans are entitled ^[2] It is best known for its annual assessment of the degree of democratic freedoms in each country, which is widely used in political science research. Freedom in the World is a yearly report by US-based Freedom House that attempts to measure the degree of Democracy and political freedom ^[3]

The organization was founded by Wendell Willkie and Eleanor Roosevelt in 1941, and describes itself as "a clear voice for democracy and freedom around the world. Wendell Lewis Willkie ( February 18 1892 &ndash October 8 1944) was a corporate lawyer in the United States and the Republican Anna Eleanor Roosevelt (ˈɛlɪnɔr ˈroʊzəvɛlt October 11 1884 &ndash November 7 1962 Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. " It receives about 80% of its budget from the U.S. government,^[4] but also receives funding from various other sources, for example the Bradley Foundation, the Smith Richardson Foundation, the Dutch government, and a list of others. The federal government of the United States is the central United States Governmental body established by the United States Constitution. The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, based in Milwaukee Wisconsin, is a conservative foundation with about half a billion US dollars in assets The Smith Richardson Foundation (SRF was funded in 1935 by the charitable contributions of Henry Smith Richardson, Sr The politics of the Netherlands take place within the framework of a parliamentary Representative democracy, a Constitutional monarchy and a ^[4] The organization has been criticized for receiving funding from and allegedly furthering the interests of the U. S. government,^[5] while others have offered praise to the group. ^[6]

Mission Statement

As stated by Freedom House:

"Freedom House is an independent organization that supports the expansion of freedom in the world. Freedom is possible only in democratic political systems in which the governments are accountable to their own people; the rule of law prevails; and freedoms of expression, association, belief and respect for the rights of minorities and women are guaranteed. "

"Freedom ultimately depends on the actions of committed and courageous men and women. We support nonviolent civic initiatives in societies where freedom is denied or under threat and we stand in opposition to ideas and forces that challenge the right of all people to be free. Freedom House functions as a catalyst for freedom, democracy, and the rule of law through its analysis, advocacy, and action. "^[7]

Freedom House also states that "Our diverse Board of Trustees is united in the view that American leadership in international affairs is essential to the cause of human rights and freedom. "^[7]

History

The organization was founded by Wendell Willkie, Eleanor Roosevelt, George Field, Dorothy Thompson, Herbert Bayard Swope, and others in 1941. Wendell Lewis Willkie ( February 18 1892 &ndash October 8 1944) was a corporate lawyer in the United States and the Republican Anna Eleanor Roosevelt (ˈɛlɪnɔr ˈroʊzəvɛlt October 11 1884 &ndash November 7 1962 Dorothy Thompson ( 9 July 1893, Lancaster New York – January 30, 1961, Portugal) was an American journalist Herbert Bayard Swope ( January 5 1882 - June 20 1958) was a U Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Originally launched in response to the threat posed by Nazism, it now describes itself as a clear voice for democracy and freedom around the world. Nazism, which was a short name for National Socialism (Nationalsozialismus refers primarily to the Ideology and practices of the National Socialist German Freedom House states that it:

"has vigorously opposed dictatorships in Central America and Chile, apartheid in South Africa, the suppression of the Prague Spring, the Soviet war in Afghanistan, genocide in Bosnia and Rwanda, and the brutal violation of human rights in Cuba, Burma, the People's Republic of China, and Iraq. Chile, officially the Republic of Chile ( Spanish:) is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow Coastal strip wedged between the The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa The Prague Spring ( Czech: Pražské jaro, Slovak: Pražská jar) was a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during The Soviet war in Afghanistan, also known as the Soviet-Afghan War or just the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan, was a nine-year conflict involving Bosnia and Herzegovina ( Latin script: Bosna i Hercegovina, Cyrillic script: Босна и Херцеговина is a country on the Balkan The Republic of Rwanda (ruːˈændə or /rəˈwɑːndə/ in English ɾwanda or in Kinyarwanda is a small Landlocked country in the The Republic of Cuba (ˈkjuːbə or) consists of the island of Cuba (the largest and second-most populous island of the Greater Antilles) Isla de la Burma, officially the Union of Myanmar ( pjìdàunzṵ mjàmmà nàinŋàndɔ̀ is the largest country by geographical area in mainland Southeast Asia. Talk People's Republic of China) PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA ARTICLE GUIDELINES For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iraq topics. It has championed the rights of democratic activists, religious believers, trade unionists, journalists, and proponents of free markets. "

It states that during the 1940s, Freedom House supported the Marshall Plan and the establishment of NATO. The 1940s decade ran from 1940 to 1949 Events and trends The 1940s was a period between the radical 1930s and the conservative 1950s which also leads the period to be The Marshall Plan (from its enactment officially the European Recovery Program, ERP) was the primary plan of the United States for rebuilding and creating a stronger The North Atlantic Treaty Freedom House also states that it was highly critical of McCarthyism. McCarthyism is a term describing the intense anti-communist suspicion in the United States in a period that lasted roughly from the late 1940s to the late 1950s ^[8] During the 1950s and 1960s, it supported the U.S. civil rights movement and its leadership included several prominent civil rights activists. The 1950s Decade refers to the years of 1950 to 1959 inclusive The 1960s decade refers to the years from the beginning of 1960 to the end of 1969 The American Civil Rights Movement (1955–1968 refers to the reform movements in the United States aimed at abolishing racial discrimination against African It supported Andrei Sakharov, other Soviet dissidents, and the Solidarity movement in Poland. Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland Freedom House assisted the post-Communist societies in the establishment of independent media, non-governmental think tanks, and the core institutions of electoral politics. ^[8]

More recently, it supported citizens involved in revolutions in Serbia, Ukraine, and Kyrgyzstan. It states "In Jordan, Freedom House worked to stem violence against women; in Algeria, it sought justice for victims of torture; in Uzbekistan, a brutal dictatorship, it sought to defend human rights advocates; in Venezuela, it worked with those seeking to protect and promote human rights in a difficult political environment. "^[8]

Organization

Freedom House is a nonprofit organization. It is predominantly funded by the U. S. government,^[4] and is headquartered in Washington, D. C. It has field offices in about a dozen countries, including Ukraine, Hungary, Serbia, Jordan, Mexico, and a number of countries in Central Asia. Ukraine (Україна Ukrayina, /ukrɑˈjinɑ/ is a country in Eastern Europe. Hungary (Magyarország 'mɔɟɔrorsaːg) officially in English the Republic of Hungary ( Magyar Köztársaság, literally Magyar (Hungarian Republic Serbia (Србија Srbija) officially the Republic of Serbia (Република Србија Republika Srbija) is a Landlocked Country Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (الأردنّ al-Urdunn) is an Arab country in Southwest Asia spanning the southern The United Mexican States ( or commonly Mexico (ˈmɛksɪkoʊ () is a federal constitutional Republic in North America. Central Asia is a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east and from southern Russia in the north to northern Pakistan in the south

It is controlled by a Board of Trustees, which it describes as composed of 'business and labor leaders, former senior government officials, scholars, writers, and journalists'. While some board members were born outside the United States, and many have been affiliated with international groups, all are current residents of the United States. It does not identify itself with either of the American Republican or the Democratic parties. The Democratic Party is one of two major Political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican Party. The board is currently chaired by Peter Ackerman. Peter Ackerman is the founding chair of the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict, the managing director of Rockport Capital Incorporated and currently chair of the Ackerman took over chairmanship of the board in September of 2005 from former CIA director R. James Woolsey, Jr. Other current notable board members include Kenneth Adelman, Steve Forbes, Farooq Kathwari, Azar Nafisi, Mark Palmer, and P. J. O'Rourke while past notable board members have included Zbigniew Brzezinski, Jeane Kirkpatrick, Samuel Huntington, Mara Liasson, Otto Reich, Donald Rumsfeld, Whitney North Seymour, and Paul Wolfowitz. near as long as it used to be several months ago It has been actively summarized and split into sub-articles and there is a dynamic talk page discussion of all Robert James Woolsey Jr (born September 21, 1941) is a foreign policy specialist and former Director of Central Intelligence and head of the Central Kenneth Lee Adelman (born June 9, 1946) is an American diplomat political writer policy analyst and William Shakespeare historian Malcolm Stevenson " Steve " Forbes Jr (born July 18, 1947) is the son of Malcolm Forbes and the editor-in-chief of business Farooq Kathwari is the Chairman President and Chief Executive officer of Ethan Allen Interiors Inc Azar Nafisi, PhD (آذر نفیسی (born December 1955 is an Iranian academic and writer who currently resides Mark Palmer (born 1941) is the Vice Chairman of Freedom House and the Council for a Community of Democracies. Patrick Jake O'Rourke (born November 14, 1947 in Toledo Ohio) is a conservative American political satirist, journalist Zbigniew Kazimierz Brzezinski (Zbigniew Kazimierz Brzeziński ˈzbigɲev bʐɛˈʑiɲski: (born March 28 1928 Warsaw, Poland) is a Polish-American Jeane Jordan Kirkpatrick ( November 19, 1926  &ndash December 7, 2006) was an American ambassador and an ardent Samuel Phillips Huntington (born April 18, 1927) is an American political scientist who gained prominence through his " Clash of Civilizations Mara Liasson (born June 13, 1955 in New York City) is a national political correspondent for National Public Radio, and a regular panelist on Otto Juan Reich (born October 16, 1945) a Cuban American, is former senior official in the administrations of Presidents Donald Henry Rumsfeld (born July 9 1932 is a United States Businessman, Politician, the 13th Secretary of Defense under President Whitney North Seymour ( January 4, 1901 – May 21, 1983) was a prominent New York Trial lawyer and bar leader who served Paul Dundes Wolfowitz (born December 22, 1943) is a former United States Ambassador to Indonesia, U

Freedom House receives the majority (80%) of its funding from the U. S. government through the National Endowment for Democracy, USAID, and the State Department. The National Endowment for Democracy, or NED, is a US Non-profit organization that was founded in 1983 to promote Democracy by providing cash The United States Agency for International Development (or USAID) is the United States federal government organization responsible for most non- military It also receives some funding from foundations such as the Bradley Foundation, the Smith Richardson Foundation, the Dutch government, and a list of others. ^[4]

Freedom House describes its relationship with the U. S. government as follows: "Freedom House is an independent, non-governmental organization that was initially created in 1941 to urge the U. S. government to adopt policies supporting democracy and human rights at home and abroad. Its reports and analyses are independent of any governmental influence and are enriched by an intellectual atmosphere of scholarly inquiry. In recent years, Freedom House has received grants from the U. S. Agency for International Development and the State Department for various projects, usually as a result of public competition. Freedom House has also applied for and received funds from other democratic governments and international bodies that promote democracy, including the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Norway and the European Union. Freedom House chooses to respond to specific funding opportunities, but never accepts funds from government institutions, including U. S. government agencies, in the form of contracts, and never functions as an extension of any government. "^[9]

Reports

This map reflects the findings of Freedom House's 2008 survey Freedom in the World, concerning the state of world freedom in 2007.      Free      Partly Free      Not Free

This graph shows the number of nations in the different categories given above for the period for which there are surveys, 1972-2005

Countries highlighted in blue are designated "Electoral Democracies" in Freedom House's 2006 survey Freedom in the World. Year 1972 ( MCMLXXII) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Representative democracy is a form of government founded on the principles of the people's representatives

See also: Freedom in the World (report)

Since 1972, (1978 in book form) Freedom House publishes an annual report, Freedom in the World, on the degree of democratic freedoms in nations and significant disputed territories around the world, by which it seeks to assess^[3] the current state of civil and political rights on a scale from 1 (most free) to 7 (least free). Freedom in the World is a yearly report by US-based Freedom House that attempts to measure the degree of Democracy and political freedom Political freedom is the absence of interference with the sovereignty of an individual by the use of coercion or aggression These reports are often^[10] used by political scientists when doing research. This is a list of notable political scientists See the List of political theorists for those who study politics without using the Scientific method. The ranking is highly correlated with several other ratings of democracy also frequently used by researchers. ^[3]

In its 2003 report, for example, Canada (judged as fully free and democratic) got a perfect score of a "1" in civil liberties and a "1" in political rights, earning it the designation of "free. Year 2003 ( MMIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page thumb| |Broken Liberty Istanbul Archaeology Museum Civil liberties are freedoms that protect the Individual from the Government. " Nigeria got a "5" and a "4," earning it the designation of "partly free," while North Korea scored the lowest rank of "7-7," and was thus dubbed "not free. Nigeria, officially named the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal Constitutional republic comprising thirty-six states and one Federal North Korea is the commonly used short form name for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (or DPRK) a State located in East Asia, " Nations are scored from 0 to 4 on several questions and the sum determines the rankings. Example questions: "Is the head of state and/or head of government or other chief authority elected through free and fair elections?", "Is there an independent judiciary?", "Are there free trade unions and peasant organizations or equivalents, and is there effective collective bargaining? Are there free professional and other private organizations?"^[11] Freedom House states that the rights and liberties of the survey are derived in large measure from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. ^[11]

The research and ratings process involved two dozen analysts and more than a dozen senior-level academic advisors. The eight members of the core research team headquartered in New York, along with 16 outside consultant analysts, prepared the country and territory reports. The analysts used a broad range of sources of information--including foreign and domestic news reports, academic analyses, nongovernmental organizations, think tanks, individual professional contacts, and visits to the region--in preparing the reports. ^[12]

The country and territory ratings were proposed by the analyst responsible for each related report. The ratings were reviewed individually and on a comparative basis in a series of six regional meetings — Asia-Pacific, Central and Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union, Latin America and the Caribbean, Middle East and North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Western Europe — involving the analysts, academic advisors with expertise in each region, and Freedom House staff. The ratings were compared to the previous year's findings, and any major proposed numerical shifts or category changes were subjected to more intensive scrutiny. These reviews were followed by cross-regional assessments in which efforts were made to ensure comparability and consistency in the findings. Many of the key country reports were also reviewed by the academic advisers. ^[13] Regardless, such a process contains elements of subjectivity.

The survey's methodology is reviewed periodically by an advisory committee of political scientists with expertise in methodological issues. ^[14]

Freedom House also produces annual reports on press freedom (Press Freedom Survey), governance in the nations of the former Soviet Union (Nations in Transit), and countries on the borderline of democracy (Countries at the Crossroads). The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 In addition, one-time reports have included a survey of women's freedoms in the Middle East.

Freedom House generally uses standard geographic regions for its reports, though it groups the countries of the Middle East and North Africa together, separately from Sub-Saharan Africa; and it still uses the arguably outdated concept of Western Europe, to include countries such as Turkey and Cyprus, while categorizing Central and Eastern Europe separately — a division stemming from the Cold War era which ignores the eastwards expansion of such organizations such the EU and NATO. The Middle East is a Subcontinent with no clear boundaries often used as a synonym to Near East, in opposition to Far East. North Africa or Northern Africa is the Northernmost Region of the African Continent, separated by the Sahara from Sub-Saharan Western Europe at its most general meaning means 'all the countries in the West of Europe ' Turkey (Türkiye known officially as the Republic of Turkey ( is a Eurasian Country that stretches Cyprus (Κύπρος transliterated: Kýpros,; Kıbrıs officially the Republic of Cyprus (Κυπριακή Δημοκρατία Kypriakī́ Dīmokratía Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the However, these groupings have nothing to do with the individual country ratings; they're merely used to make nations easier to find when perusing their reports, and also for comparative statistics between the modern day and the ratings of decades past.

It has been cited in thousands of scholarly articles and books. [1]

On January 16, 2008, Freedom House dropped the "freedom status" of the Philippines to partially free from a list of totally free countries. Events 27 BC - The title Augustus is bestowed upon Gaius Julius Caesar Octavian by the Roman Senate. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common It based the downgrade on a spate of political killings "specifically targeting left-wing political activists in the country. Extrajudicial killings and forced disappearances in the Philippines refer to the illegal liquidations, unlawful or felonious killings and Forced disappearances in the "^[15]

Praise

On its website, Freedom House provides praise of its reports. Professor of International Political Economy Francis Fukuyama is quoted on the Freedom House web site as saying, "An essential source, Freedom in the World works from the assumption that freedom is a universal value, not reserved for the rich. Yoshihiro Francis Fukuyama (born 27 October 1952) is an American Philosopher, political economist, and author Something is of universal value if it has the same value or worth for all or almost all people "^[16] Foreign affairs writer Fareed Zakaria is also quoted on the organization's web site as saying: "While there are many sources of economic data, good political data is hard to find. Fareed Zakaria ( born January 20, 1964) is an India -born American Journalist, Author, and television host specializing Freedom House's survey is an exception. For anyone concerned with the state of freedom, or simply with the state of the world, Freedom in the World is an indispensable guide. "^[16]

Criticisms

The methodology Freedom House uses for its reports has been criticised by social scientist K. A. Bollen for its perceived bias towards countries with pro-US positions. ^[17] Bollen argues that by relying on 'experts' or 'judges', the methodology falls into what is described as 'systematic measurement error': "Regardless of the direction of distortions, it is highly likely that every set of indicators formed by a single author or organization contains systematic measurement error. The origin of this measure lies in the common methodology of forming measures. Selectivity of information and various traits of the judges fuse into a distinct form of bias that is likely to characterize all indicators from a common publication. "^[18]

Other activities

In addition to these reports, Freedom House participates in advocacy initiatives, currently focused on North Korea, Africa, and religious freedom. It has offices in a number of countries, where it promotes and assists local human rights workers and non-government organizations.

On January 12, 2006, as part of a crackdown on unauthorized nongovernmental organizations, the Uzbek government ordered Freedom House to suspend operations in Uzbekistan. Resource and Information Centers managed by Freedom House in Tashkent, Namangan, and Samarkand offered access to materials and books on human rights, as well as technical equipment, such as computers, copiers and Internet access. Namangan (Russian Наманган is the second-largest city in Uzbekistan (2006 pop Samarkand (Samarqand Самарқанд سمرقند UniPers: "Samarqand" is the second-largest city in Uzbekistan and the capital of The government warned that criminal proceedings could be brought against Uzbek staff members and visitors following recent amendments to the criminal code and Code on Administrative Liability of Uzbekistan. Other human rights groups have been similarly threatened and obliged to suspend operations.

Freedom House is a member of the International Freedom of Expression Exchange, a global network of more than 70 non-governmental organizations that monitors free expression violations around the world and defends journalists, writers and others who are persecuted for exercising their right to freedom of expression. The International Freedom of Expression Exchange ( IFEX) founded in 1992 is a global network of 81 non-governmental organisations that promotes and defends the right

Regarding regime change, Freedom House states "Freedom House works directly with men and women around the world to expand the political rights and civil liberties they experience in their countries. " Regime change " is literally the replacement of one Regime with another More specifically, Freedom House focuses on initiatives that contribute to long-term stability and growth in countries, such as strengthening civil society, promoting open government, defending human rights, and facilitating the free flow of information and ideas. While these activities - and the liberties they represent - may be threatening to some repressive governments, Freedom House does not initiate or sponsor regime change or popular revolutions. We help men and women of good will to improve their own societies. "^[9]

The Financial Times has reported that Freedom House is one of several organizations selected by the State Department to receive funding for 'clandestine activities' inside Iran. The Financial Times ( FT) is a British international business Newspaper. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iran topics. ^[19] In a research study, with Mr. Ackerman acting as chief adviser, Freedom House sets out its conclusions: "Far more often than is generally understood, the change agent is broad-based, non-violent civic resistance - which employs tactics such as boycotts, mass protests, blockades, strikes and civil disobedience to de-legitimate authoritarian rulers and erode their sources of support, including the loyalty of their armed defenders. "^[19]

On June 8, 2006, the vice-chairman of Freedom House's board of trustees^[20] asked the U.S. Senate to increase the share of NGO funding aimed at helping support non-violent foreign democratic activists organize for potential overthrows of their non-democratic governments. Events 68 - The Roman Senate accepts emperor Galba. 536 - St Silverius becomes Pope (probable Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. The United States Senate is the Upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the Lower house being the House of Representatives Palmer argued in favor of shifting funding away from NGOs working in already democratic nations to fund this effort. ^[21]

Debate at UN's 2001 NGO Committee Meeting

In May 2001, the Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations of the United Nations heard arguments for and against Freedom House. The United Nations ( UN) is an International organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in International law, International security Representatives of Cuba alleged that the organization is a U. The Republic of Cuba (ˈkjuːbə or) consists of the island of Cuba (the largest and second-most populous island of the Greater Antilles) Isla de la S. foreign policy instrument linked to the CIA and "submitted proof of the politically motivated, interventionist activities the NGO (Freedom House) carried out against their Government". They also claimed a lack of criticism of U. S. human rights violations in the annual reports. Cuba also claimed that these violations are well documented by other reports, such as those of Human Rights Watch. Human Rights Watch is a United States -based international Non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on Human rights. Other countries such as China and Sudan also gave criticism. Talk People's Republic of China) PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA ARTICLE GUIDELINES Sudan (officially the Republic of Sudan) ( السودان al-Sūdān is a country in northeastern Africa. The Russian representative inquired "why this organization, an NGO which defended human rights, was against the creation of the International Criminal Court. Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending The International Criminal Court ( ICC or ICCt) was established in 2002 as a permanent tribunal to prosecute individuals for Genocide, crimes against "^[22]

The United States representative claimed that alleged links between Freedom House and the CIA were "simply not true. " The representative said he agreed that the NGO receives funds from the United States Government, but said this is disclosed in its reports. The representative said the funds were from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which was not a branch of the CIA. The representative said his country had a law prohibiting the government from engaging in the activities of organizations seeking to change public policy, such as Freedom House. The representative said his country was not immune from criticism from Freedom House, which he said was well documented. The US representative further argued that Freedom House was a human rights organization which sought to represent those who did not have a voice. The representative said he would continue to support NGOs who criticized his Government and those of others. ^[22]

On June 25, 2005, economist and writer F. William Engdahl asserted on the GlobalResearch. Events 524 - Battle of Vézeronce, the Franks defeat the Burgundians Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Frederick William Engdahl (born 1944 has written on issues of energy politics and economics for more than 30 years beginning with the first oil shock in the early 1970s. ca website that Freedom House was "created in the late 1940’s to back the creation of NATO" and criticized the group for being headed by former CIA director James Woolsey at the time of his article's publication. The Office of United States Director of Central Intelligence (DCI was established by U ^[23]

Criticism

As noted in the section on organization above, Freedom House receives most of its funding from the U. S. government, and prominent U. S. government officials reside on its board, most notably past officials have included conservatives. Conservatism is a term used to describe political philosophies that favour Tradition, where tradition refers to various religious cultural or nationally defined These ties to state power and conservative institutions have been criticized. ^[24] The organization states that its board of trustees contains Democrats, Republicans and Independents who are a mix of business and labor leaders, former senior government officials, scholars and journalists. Trustee is a Legal term that refers to a holder of property on behalf of a beneficiary. ^[9]

MIT Professor Noam Chomsky, claimed in 1988 that Freedom House "had interlocks with AIM, the World League for Freedom and Democracy, Resistance International, and U. Avram Noam Chomsky (noʊm ˈtʃɑmski born December 7 1928 is an American linguist, Philosopher, cognitive scientist, Political The World League for Freedom and Democracy (formerly the World Anti-Communist League) is an international Right-wing political organization founded in 1966 in S. government bodies such as Radio Free Europe and the CIA, and has long served as a virtual propaganda arm of the (U. This article is about the radio broadcast service For the REM S) government and international right wing. "^[5] He justifies this claim by presenting a series of national elections that he claims were staged and that the Freedom House observers praised. He also criticizes Freedom House's claimed expenditure of "substantial resources in criticizing the media for insufficient sympathy with U. S. foreign-policy ventures and excessively harsh criticism of U. S. client states. " Chomsky further argues that "Its most notable publication of this genre was Peter Braestrup's Big Story, which contended that the media's negative portrayal of the Tet offensive helped lose the war. The work is a travesty of scholarship, but more interesting is its premise: that the mass media not only should support any national venture abroad, but should do so with enthusiasm, such enterprises being by definition noble. "^[5]

Craig Murray, the British ambassador to Uzbekistan from 2002 to 2004, wrote that the executive director of Freedom House told him in 2003 that the group decided to back off from its efforts to spotlight human rights abuses in Uzbekistan, because some Republican board members (in Murray’s words) “expressed concern that Freedom House was failing to keep in sight the need to promote freedom in the widest sense, by giving full support to U. S. and coalition forces. ” Human rights abuses in Uzbekistan at the time included treatment of prisoners who were killed by "immersion in boiling liquid," and by strapping on a gas mask and blocking the filters, Murray reported. ^[25] Jennifer Windsor, the executive director of Freedom House now and in 2003, said Murray's "characterization of our conversation is an inexplicable misrepresentation not only of what was said at that meeting, but of Freedom House’s record in Uzbekistan. " "Freedom House has been a consistent and harsh critic of the human rights situation in Uzbekistan, as clearly demonstrated in press releases and in our annual assessments of that country," she wrote. ^[26]

On December 7, 2004, U.S. House Represenative Ron Paul criticized Freedom House for allegedly administering a U. Events 43 BC - Marcus Tullius Cicero assassinated 1696 - Connecticut Route 108, one of the oldest highways "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " The United States House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress; the other is the Senate. S. -funded program in Ukraine where "much of that money was targeted to assist one particular candidate. " Paul said that

"one part that we do know thus far is that the U. S. government, through the U. S. Agency for International Development (USAID), granted millions of dollars to the Poland-America-Ukraine Cooperation Initiative (PAUCI), which is administered by the U. S. -based Freedom House. PAUCI then sent U. S. Government funds to numerous Ukrainian non-governmental organizations (NGOs). This would be bad enough and would in itself constitute meddling in the internal affairs of a sovereign nation. But, what is worse is that many of these grantee organizations in Ukraine are blatantly in favor of presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko. "^[27]

Freedom House reports have criticized both the United States and its major allies to a certain extent, for example in its 2006 report on the U. S. and Israel. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Israel topics. It criticized the U. S. for its policies on interrogation and detention during the War on Terrorism and urged they should be brought into compliance with international law. The War on Terrorism (also known as the War on Terror) is the common term for the military political and legal, and ideological conflict and specifically for U ^[28][29] Israel earns good scores in political and civil rights,^[30] despite considerable evidence indicating that the Israeli state violates the rights of Arab populations. ^[31] The occupied Palestinian territories do not receive good scores. ^[32]

Freedom House has also been critical of some traditional U. S. allies, such as Saudi Arabia and Chile under Augusto Pinochet, classifying them as "Not Free. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, KSA ( المملكة العربية السعودية, al-Mamlaka al-ʻArabiyya as-Suʻūdiyya) or Suudi Chile, officially the Republic of Chile ( Spanish:) is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow Coastal strip wedged between the Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte (November " It was also strongly critical of apartheid South Africa and military dictatorships in Latin America. ^[33]

Russia, identified by Freedom House as "Not Free" in 2007, has called Freedom House biased and has also accused the group of serving U. S. interests. Sergei Markov, a Duma deputy from the pro-Kremlin United Russia party, called Freedom House a "Russophobic" organization. "You can listen to everything they say, except when it comes to Russia," Markov argued. "There are many Russophobes there," he asserted. ^[34] In response, Christopher Walker, director of studies at Freedom House, argued that Freedom House made its evaluations based on objective criteria explained on the organization's web site, and he denied that it had a pro-U. S. agenda. "If you look closely at the 193 countries that we evaluate, you'll find that we criticize what are often considered strategic allies of the United States," he said. ^[34]

Praise

Former US President Bill Clinton, giving a speech at a Freedom House breakfast, said:

I'm honored to be here with all of you and to be here at Freedom House. William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton (born William Jefferson Blythe III, August 19 1946 served as the forty-second President of the United States For more than 50 years, Freedom House has been a voice for tolerance for human dignity. People all over the world are better off because of your work. And I'm very grateful that Freedom House has rallied this diverse and dynamic group. It's not every day that the Carnegie Endowment, the Progressive Policy Institute, the Heritage Foundation, and the American Foreign Policy Council share the same masthead. The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace is a formally private nonprofit organization in practice closely associated with the United States Department of State, The Progressive Policy Institute ( PPI) is a Think tank in the United States, founded in 1989 and affiliated with the Democratic Leadership The Heritage Foundation is an American conservative Think tank. The American Foreign Policy Council (AFPC is a conservative non-profit U ^[35]

Writing in the conservative National Review Online, John R. National Review ( NR) is a biweekly Magazine and Web site, founded by the late author William F Miller, a research professor at the George Washington University’s Elliott School, states that

Freedom House has unwaveringly raised the standard of freedom in evaluating fascist countries, Communist regimes, and plain old, dictatorial thugocracies. Its annual rankings are read and used in the United Nations and other international organizations, as well as by the U. S. State Department. Policy and aid decisions are influenced by Freedom House’s report. Those fighting for freedom in countries lacking it are encouraged or discouraged by what Freedom House’s report covers. And sometimes — most importantly — their governments are moved to greater effort. "^[6]

Miller nevertheless criticized the organization in 2007 as not paying enough attention to slavery in its reports. He wrote democracies such as Germany and India, but mostly repressive regimes, needed to be held to account for their lack of enforcement of laws against human trafficking and the bondage of some foreign workers. ^[6]

Notes

See also

• Democracy Index
• Human Development Index
• List of Indices of Freedom
• Human rights
• Negative rights
• Cultural relativism
• United States government
• Democracy

External links

Official Links

• Freedom House

Freedom House Reports

• Freedom House Publications
• 2006 essay and survey data
• Annual Reports: 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001

Related Links

• Freedom House:when “freedom” is only a pretext, Voltaire Network, September 2004
• Nonprofit Income Tax Declarations: 990 forms posted to Haitianalysis.com (incomplete abstract in Word format)