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Cambodia once again ranked among the world’s lowest-performing countries in a global rule of law index released in late October.
The World Justice Project (WJP), an international research and civil society organization, placed Cambodia above only Venezuela and Afghanistan, two countries in humanitarian crisis and widely considered authoritarian, in its annual Rule of Law Index, which this year assessed 143 countries, one more than in 2024.
In the East Asia and Pacific region, Cambodia ranked last among 15 countries measured, according to factors assessing the mainstays of rule of law.
The WJP defines these as a durable system of laws, institutions, norms, and community commitment that upholds accountability, just laws, open government and accessible, impartial justice. Cambodia also placed bottom among 38 lower-middle-income countries, positions it has held almost every year since the index was established in 2015.
While Cambodia’s score fell by less than one percent, WJP noted that global rule of law has again entered a period of decline. This year, 68% of countries saw deterioration in their rule of law performance, compared to 57% in 2024.
“The steady deterioration in the rule of law had slowed in recent years,” said Alejandro Ponce, WJP’s Executive Director, in a press release. “This year, however, we see a sharp reversal: more countries are declining, and fewer are improving.”
The index looks at several factors to measure aspects of rule of law, including constraint on government powers, corruption, open government, fundamental rights and civil justice. It draws on nationally representative surveys of the general public and questionnaires from local and international experts, and is intended as a tool for governments, civil society and the private sector to advance reform and strengthen accountability.
For Cambodia, particularly low scores in areas such as absence of corruption and open government placed it well below global averages. The country’s highest mark was for Order and Security at 0.66 on a scale to one, though still below the global average.
Government spokesperson Pen Bona described the index as an independent assessment that officials had not verified. He said Cambodia had emerged from decades of civil war and has been developing rapidly, adding that citizens have full access to basic democratic rights, a claim that runs contrary to WJP’s findings.
As with its response to the 2024 index, government officials argued that measurements of restricted freedoms fail to distinguish between lawful political activity and legal violations.
Long criticized by human rights groups for targeting ruling party opponents, activists and journalists through judicial overreach, local rights group Licadho says 88 “prisoners of interest” are currently imprisoned on charges that characterize their activism or speech as crimes.
Earlier this year, WJP awarded CamboJA News the Anthony Lewis Prize for Exceptional Rule of Law Journalism, which honors “journalistic courage and craft that strengthens accountability and advances adherence to rule of law principles.”
(Additional reporting by Khuon Narim)
