Human Rights and Freedom in Lebanon

https://www.humantruth.info/lebanon_human_rights_and_freedom.html

By Vexen Crabtree 2019

#gender_equality #human_rights #lebanon #lebanon_women #prejudice #slavery #women

Lebanon Lebanese Republic [Country Profile Page]
Status	Independent State
Social and Moral Index	120th best
Location	Asia, The Mediterranean, The Middle East
Population	6.9m₁
Life Expectancy	75.05yrs (2017)₂

Lebanon is amongst the worst places in the world at ensuring human rights and freedom, and it has severe cultural issues when it comes to tolerance and equality. Lebanon does worse than average when it comes to the rate of gender bias (from 7 indicators)₃, commentary in Human Rights Watch reports₄, opposing gender inequality₅, supporting personal, civil & economic freedoms₆, combatting modern slavery₇, its average Freedom in the World rating (still good for Asia), supporting press freedom₈, its nominal commitment to Human Rights₉, freethought₁₀ and in LGBT equality₁₁. And finally, it falls into the worst 20 in its success in fighting anti-semitic prejudice₁₂. "Lebanese authorities continue to prosecute individuals for peaceful use of freespeech"; in 2017 soldiers beat up protestors₁₃. The Armed Forces and Security Forces use torture. Social progress is always going to be difficult in a country where the richest 1% hold 23% of the country's entire income₁₄.

1. Lebanon's Human Rights, Equality & Tolerance

#equality #freedom #gender_equality #human_rights #lebanon #morals #politics #prejudice #tolerance

Compared to Asia (2025)₁₅
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₁₅
1	Japan	34.7
2	Taiwan	42.4
3	Cyprus	43.8
	...
18	Nepal	97.6
19	Kyrgyzstan	99.6
20	Russia	103.5
21	Lebanon	104.1
22	Azerbaijan	107.4
23	Malaysia	107.5
24	Indonesia	108.1
25	Kuwait	108.6
26	China	110.2
	Asia Avg	103.00
q=52.

Human Rights, Equality & Tolerance (2025)₁₅
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₁₅
1	Sweden	5.9
2	Norway	8.0
3	Denmark	8.1
	...
122	Tanzania	102.4
123	Russia	103.5
124	Sierra Leone	103.7
125	Lebanon	104.1
126	Belarus	104.3
127	Kenya	104.3
128	Madagascar	104.4
129	Morocco	105.3
	World Avg	86.35
q=198.

The best countries in the world at ensuring human rights, fostering equality and promoting tolerance, are Sweden, Norway and Denmark₁₆. These countries are displaying the best traits that humanity has to offer. The worst countries are N. Korea, Somalia and Eritrea₁₆.

25 datasets are used to calculate points for each country, including multiple decades of data on supporting press freedom, combatting modern slavery, supporting personal, civil & economic freedoms, its average Freedom in the World rating, commentary in Human Rights Watch reports, its nominal commitment to Human Rights, speed of uptake of HR treaties, opposing gender inequality, the rate of gender bias (from 7 indicators), the year from which women could participate in democracy, its success in fighting anti-semitic prejudice, LGBT equality and freethought. The regions with the best average results per country are Scandinavia, Baltic States and Europe₁₆, whereas the worst are The Middle East, Africa and Asia₁₆.

For more, see:

" Which are the Best Countries for Human Rights, Equality and Tolerance?" by Vexen Crabtree (2025).

Amnesty International's 2023-23 summary on human rights in Lebanon stated:

“The authorities failed to address key economic and social rights affected by the country�€�s economic crisis, leaving residents without adequate access to healthcare and water. Impunity continued to protect perpetrators of torture and other crimes. Defamation laws were used against critics of the authorities. Migrant workers, particularly women domestic workers, continued to face abuse under the discriminatory kafala (sponsorship) system. Women still faced discrimination in law and in practice. Authorities stepped up their deportation of Syrian refugees to Syria despite risks of egregious human rights abuses there. The authorities banned public LGBTI events during Pride month. ”
"The State of the World's Human Rights 2022/23" by Amnesty International (2023)₁₇

“Human Rights Watch continued to document reports of torture by Lebanese security forces, including Internal Security Forces, the Lebanese Armed Forces, and Military Intelligence. In October, parliament passed a new anti-torture law that, while a positive step, falls short of Lebanon´s obligations under international law. [...]
While freedom of expression is generally respected in Lebanon, defaming or criticizing the Lebanese president or army is a criminal offense carrying penalties of up to three years in prison. The Lebanese penal code also criminalizes libel and defamation of other public officials, authorizing imprisonment of up to one year. In 2017, Lebanese authorities continued to detain and charge individuals for social media posts critical of government officials. [...]
Lebanon continues to try civilians, including children, in military courts, in violation of their due process rights and international law. Those who have stood trial in the military courts describe incommunicado detention, the use of confessions extracted under torture, decisions issued without an explanation, seemingly arbitrary sentences, and a limited ability to appeal. [...]
An estimated 250,000 migrant domestic workers, primarily from Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, the Philippines, Nepal, and Bangladesh, are excluded from labor law protections. The kafala (sponsorship) system subjects them to restrictive immigration rules and places them at risk of exploitation and abuse [case examples] include non-payment or delayed payment of wages, forced confinement, refusal to provide time off, and verbal and physical abuse. [...]
Lebanon has no minimum age for marriage for all its citizens. Instead, religious courts set the age based on the religion-based personal status laws, some of which allow girls younger than 15 to marry. Parliament has failed to take up draft bills that would set the age of marriage at 18.”
"World Report 2018" by Human Rights Watch (2018)₁₃

2. Human Rights & Tolerance Datasets

2.1. Press Freedom

#democracy #freedom #Freedom_of_Speech #Good_Governance #mass_media #politics #UK

Press Freedom Higher is better₈
Pos.		2025₈
1	Norway	92.31
2	Estonia	89.46
3	Netherlands	88.64
	...
128	Tunisia	43.48
129	Peru	42.88
130	Cameroon	42.75
131	Lebanon	42.62
132	Congo, DR	42.31
133	Oman	42.29
134	El Salvador	41.19
135	Somalia	40.49
	Asia Avg	39.69
	World Avg	54.65
q=179.

Lebanon ranks 131st in the world in terms of supporting press freedom.

The freedom to investigate, publish information, and have access to others' opinion is a fundamental part of today's information-driven world, and is linked with Freedom of Speech and Good Governance. Scores on the Press Freedom Index are calculated according to indicators including pluralism - the degree to which opinions are represented in the media, media independence of authorities, self-censorship, legislation, transparency and the infrastructure that supports news and information, and, the level of violence against journalists which includes lengths of imprisonments. The index "does not take direct account of the kind of political system but it is clear that democracies provide better protection for the freedom to produce and circulate accurate news and information than countries where human rights are flouted". The rankings are used as one of the datasets of the Social and Moral Development Index₁₈

It must be noted that press freedom is not an indicator of press quality and the press itself can be abusive; the UK suffers in particular from a popular brand of nasty reporting that infuses several of its newspapers who are particularly prone to running destructive and often untrue campaigns against victims. The Press Freedom Index notes that "the index should in no way be taken as an indicator of the quality of the media in the countries concerned".

For more, see:

"Human Rights" by Vexen Crabtree (2019).

Averages by decade for Lebanon (for the ranks, lower is better):

Press Freedom	2000s Average	2010s Average
Lebanon:	23.75	68.23
World Rank:	92nd	⇣ 98th
World Avg:	27.44	65.91

2.2. Slavery in the 2020s

#burundi #eritrea #human_rights #indonesia #slavery

Slavery in the 2020s Lower is better₇
Pos.		Total Per 1000₇
1=	Switzerland	0.50
1=	Norway	0.50
3=	Germany	0.60
	...
114=	Romania	7.50
114=	Burundi	7.50
116=	Gabon	7.60
116=	Lebanon	7.60
116=	Ecuador	7.60
119	Slovakia	7.70
120=	Colombia	7.80
120=	Equatorial Guinea	7.80
	Asia Avg	9.89
	World Avg	7.15
q=160.

With regard to combatting modern slavery, Lebanon ranks 116th in the world.

Modern slavery includes forced labour (often of the under-age), debt bondage (especially generational), sexual slavery, chattel slavery and other forms of abuse, some of which can be surprisingly difficult to detect, but often target those fleeing from warzones, and poverty-stricken vulnerable.₁₉. Some industries (diamond, clothing, coal) from some countries (Burundi₂₀, Eritrea₂₀, Indonesia₂₁) are a particular concern. The Walk Free Foundation, say in their 2023 report that 50 million people are living in modern slavery₂₀.

For more, see:

"The Historical Slave Trade and Modern Slavery" by Vexen Crabtree (2018).

Averages by decade for Lebanon (for the ranks, lower is better):

Slavery	2010s Average	2020s Average
Lebanon:	1.70	7.60
World Rank:	19th	⇣ 116th
World Avg:	6.54	7.15

2.3. Personal, Civil & Economic Freedom

#freedom #politics

Personal, Civil & Economic Freedom Lower is better₆
Pos.		2014 Rank₆
1	Hong Kong	1
2	Switzerland	2
3	New Zealand	3
	...
105=	Argentina	103
106	Malawi	106
107	Thailand	107
108	Lebanon	108
109	Laos	109
110	Ivory Coast	110
111=	Ukraine	111
111=	Senegal	111
	Asia Avg	94.6
	World Avg	79.7
q=159.

Regarding supporting personal, civil & economic freedoms, Lebanon is 108th in the world.

The Human Freedom Index published by the Fraser Institute is...

“... a broad measure of human freedom, understood as the absence of coercive constraint. It uses 79 distinct indicators of personal and economic freedom in the following areas: Rule of Law, Security and Safety, Movement, Religion, Association, Assembly, and Civil Society, Expression, Relationships, Size of Government, Legal System and Property Rights, Access to Sound Money, Freedom to Trade Internationally, Regulation of Credit, Labor, and Business. [...]
The highest levels of freedom are in Western Europe, Northern Europe, and North America (Canada and the United States. The lowest levels are in the Middle East and North Africa, South Asia, and sub-Saharan Africa. [...]
Countries in the top quartile of freedom enjoy a significant higher per capita income ($37,147) [compared with] the least-free quartile [at] $8,700). The HFI finds a strong correlation between human freedom and democracy.”
"The Human Freedom Index" by The Fraser Institute (2016)₂₂

For more, see:

"Human Rights" by Vexen Crabtree (2019).

2.4. Freedom in the World

#freedom #human_rights #hungary #politics #USA

Freedom in the World Lower is better
Pos.		2024 Score
1=	Norway	1.0
1=	Canada	1.0
1=	Cape Verde	1.0
	...
127=	Bangladesh	4.5
127=	Guinea-Bissau	4.5
127=	Maldives	4.5
127=	Lebanon	4.5
127=	Mozambique	4.5
132=	Morocco	5.0
132=	Mauritania	5.0
132=	Jordan	5.0
	Asia Avg	5.0
	World Avg	3.7
q=205.

Lebanon is positioned 123rd in the world regarding its average Freedom in the World rating (still low for Asia).

Freedom House's long-standing annual report has been running since the 1970s, collecting data on political rights (PR) and civil liberties (CL). Their reports rate countries as "Free", "Partially Free" or "Not Free", however the results here are based on their numerical values. Many countries score the best combination of scores (1 and 1), which is why the table of results show many places equally placed in 1st place. In the past two decades, some well-established democracies like the USA and Hungary have been falling. Whilst most of the world in general is improving rights and freedoms over time, the 2020s has seen some regression.

For more, see:

" Which are the Best Countries for Human Rights, Equality and Tolerance?" by Vexen Crabtree (2025).

Averages by decade for Lebanon (for the ranks, lower is better):

Freedom in the World	1970s Average	1980s Average	1990s Average	2000s Average	2010s Average
Lebanon:	3.3	4.8	5.4	5.0	4.5
World Rank:	55th	⇣ 86th	⇣ 145th	⇣ 146th	⇡ 137th
World Avg:	4.3	4.2	3.6	3.4	3.4

2.5. Human Rights Watch Comments

#human_rights

Human Rights Watch Comments Higher is better₄
Pos.		2017 Score₄
1=	UK	9
1=	France	9
1=	Germany	9
	...
85=	Venezuela	-5
85=	Oman	-5
85=	Tajikistan	-5
85=	Lebanon	-5
85=	Mali	-5
85=	Israel	-5
91=	UAE	-6
91=	Rwanda	-6
	Asia Avg	-5.0
	World Avg	-1.9
q=123.

Lebanon comes 78th in the world regarding commentary in Human Rights Watch reports.

Human Rights Watch comments concentrate mostly on negative issues, however, they also make positive comments for those countries that engage in human rights defence around the world, or who make improvements at home. By adding up positive and negative comments (including double-points for negatives that involve large scales and crimes against humanity), the Social and Moral Index turns HRW commentary into quantified values. Some countries may be unfairly penalized because HRW have not examined them, and, some countries "get away" with abuses if they manage to hide it, or if it goes unnoticed - a negative point has been given for those countries in which HRW specifically state that access to investigators has been barred. The points were limited to a minimum of -10 because there are some points at which things are so bad, with abuses affecting so many, it is difficult to be more specific about the depths of the issues.

For more, see:

"Human Rights" by Vexen Crabtree (2019).

2.6. Nominal Commitment to HR

#human_rights

Nominal Commitment to HR Higher is better₉
Pos.		2009 Treaties₉
1	Argentina	24
2=	Chile	23
2=	Costa Rica	23
	...
144=	Suriname	12
144=	Kuwait	12
144=	Trinidad & Tobago	12
144=	Lebanon	12
148=	Thailand	11
148=	Barbados	11
148=	Bahamas	11
148=	Cuba	11
	Asia Avg	12.7
	World Avg	15.1
q=194.

Lebanon ranks 137th in the world in terms of its nominal commitment to Human Rights.

There are many international agreements on human rights, and, many mechanisms by which countries can be brought to account for their actions. Together, these have been the biggest historical movement in the fight against oppression and inhumanity. Or, putting it another way: these are rejected mostly by those who wish to oppress inhumanely. None of them are perfect and many people object to various components and wordings, but, no-one has come up with, and enforced, better methods of controlling the occasional desires that states and peoples have of causing angst for other states and peoples in a violent, unjust or inhumane way. Points are awarded for the number of human rights agreements ratified by the country, plus the acceptance of the petition mechanisms for disputes. The maximum possible score in 2009 was 24.

For more, see:

"Human Rights" by Vexen Crabtree (2019).

2.7. HR Treaties Lag

#human_rights #international_law #micronesia #politics #small_islands

HR Treaties Lag Lower is better₂₃
Pos.		2019 Avg Yrs/Treaty₂₃
1	Ecuador	2.15
2	Uruguay	2.25
3	Tunisia	3.65
	...
93	Algeria	9.95
94	St Vincent & Grenadines	9.98
95	Azerbaijan	10.08
96	Lebanon	10.14
97	Afghanistan	10.23
98	Dominican Rep.	10.24
99	Kuwait	10.36
100	Laos	10.53
	Asia Avg	10.97
	World Avg	10.02
q=195.

Lebanon ranks 96th in the world with regard to speed of uptake of HR treaties.

Human Rights (HR) Treaties Lag is a count of how long it took each country to sign each of 11 key HR treaties. From the date of the first signatory of each treaty, all other countries have one point added to their score for each day they delayed in signing. Results are presented as average time in years to sign each one. The lower a country's score, the more enthusiastically it has taken on international Human Rights Treaties - which are, of course, minimal standards of good governance. The slowest are the countries of Micronesia, Melanesia, Australasia and Polynesia all lagged by over 12 years per treaty. The best regions are The Americas, Scandinavia and the Mediterranean.

For more, see:

" Which are the Best Countries for Human Rights, Equality and Tolerance?" by Vexen Crabtree (2025).

3. Gender Equality Datasets

The 1950s saw a late rush of 43 countries, including Lebanon and many developing nations, move to cease preventing women from voting. Lebanon has made some steps towards ending gender inequality but much more needs to be done.

"Lebanon has 15 separate religion-based personal status laws, which discriminate against women [including] inequality in access to divorce, residence of children after divorce, and property rights", and there is no legal protection against marital rape, although a positive development in 2017 saw the repeal of article 522 of the criminal code, "which had allowed rapists to escape prosecution by marrying the victim"₁₃.

See:

"Religion Versus Womankind" by Vexen Crabtree (2007)

3.1. Gender Inequality

#gender #gender_equality #human_rights #misogyny #women

Gender Inequality Lower is better₅
Pos.		2022₅
1	Denmark	0.01
2	Norway	0.01
3	Switzerland	0.02
	...
87	Peru	0.37
88	Ecuador	0.37
89	Sri Lanka	0.37
90	Lebanon	0.38
91	Vietnam	0.38
92	Philippines	0.39
93	Panama	0.39
94	Egypt	0.39
	Asia Avg	0.33
	World Avg	0.34
q=166.

Lebanon ranks 90th in the world in terms of opposing gender inequality.

The UN Human Development Reports include statistics on gender equality which take into account things like maternal mortality, access to political power (seats in parliament) and differences between male and female education rates. Gender inequality is not a necessary part of early human development. Although a separation of roles is almost universal due to different strengths between the genders, this does not have to mean that women are subdued, and, such patriarchalism is not universal in ancient history. Those cultures and peoples who shed, or never developed, the idea that mankind ought to dominate womankind, are better cultures and peoples than those who, even today, cling violently to those mores.

For more, see:

"Gender Equality" by Vexen Crabtree (2023).

Data starts in 2007, so the 2000s average may be a little skewed due to too few datapoints. From the 2000s to the 2010s, Lebanon was one of only 12 countries where Gender Inequality got worse.

Averages by decade for Lebanon (for the ranks, lower is better):

Gender Inequality	2000s Average	2010s Average
Lebanon:	0.42	0.43
World Rank:	73rd	⇣ 100th
World Avg:	0.41	0.37

3.2. Gender Biases

#gender #gender_equality #prejudice #women

Gender Biases Lower is better₃
Pos.		2022 %₃
1	Sweden	31.8₂₄
2	New Zealand	34.4₂₅
3	Australia	37.0₂₅
	...
52	Georgia	94.7₂₄
53	Thailand	95.5₂₅
54	Iran	95.5₂₅
55	Lebanon	95.6₂₅
56	Kenya	95.7₂₅
57	Tunisia	96.8₂₅
58	Zambia	97.1₂₆
59	S. Africa	97.1₂₄
	Asia Avg	94.24
	World Avg	83.93
q=88.

With respect to the rate of gender bias (from 7 indicators), Lebanon comes 55th in the world.

The Gender Social Norms Index (GSNI) looks at gender biases across seven criteria; the % given here is for the total people who are biased across any of those criteria. By subtracting the value from 100%, you can see that those who do well on this index, you are seeing a count of those who do not appear to be biased against women in any of the criteria, and so, doing well on this index is a very positive sign for any country.

The data was included in UN (2022) with full results in Annex table AS6.7.1; their data stems for ranges between 2005 and 2022, depending on the country in question.

3.3. Year Women Can Vote

#christianity #gender_equality #human_rights #politics #women

Year Women Can Vote Lower is better
Pos.		Total Year
1	New Zealand	1893
2	Australia	1902
3	Finland	1906
	...
91=	Bolivia	1952
91=	Ivory Coast	1952
91=	Greece	1952
91=	Lebanon	1952
95=	Guyana	1953
95=	Mexico	1953
95=	Bhutan	1953
95=	Syria	1953
	Asia Avg	1907
	World Avg	1930
q=189.

Regarding the year from which women could participate in democracy, Lebanon comes 91st in the world.

Women now have equal rights in the vast majority of countries across the world. Although academic literature oftens talks of when a country "grants women the right to vote", this enforces a backwards way of thinking. Women always had the right to vote, however, they were frequently denied that right. The opposition to women's ability to vote in equality with man was most consistently and powerfully opposed by the Catholic Church, other Christian organisations, Islamic authorities and some other religious and secular traditionalists.

For more, see:

"Gender Equality" by Vexen Crabtree (2023).

4. Prejudice Datasets

4.1. Anti-Semite Opinions

#antisemitism #christianity #germany #indonesia #jordan #judaism #laos #morocco #netherlands #pakistan #philippines #religion #religious_violence #saudi_arabia #spain #sweden #turkey #UK #vietnam

Anti-Semite Opinions Lower is better₁₂
Pos.		2014 %₁₂
1	Laos	0
2	Philippines	3
3	Sweden	4
	...
87	Saudi Arabia	74
88	Egypt	75
89	Oman	76
90	Lebanon	78
91=	Morocco	80
91=	Qatar	80
91=	UAE	80
94=	Jordan	81
	Asia Avg	48.2
	World Avg	36.8
q=101.

In terms of its success in fighting anti-semitic prejudice, Lebanon comes 12th-worst in the world.

Anti-Semitism is the word given to irrational racism against Jews. It's not the same as anti-Judaism (arguments against the religion) nor the same as anti-Zionism (arguments against Israel). In history, influential Christian theologians concocted the arguments against Jews that led, very early on, to widespread Christian action against Jews₂₇_,₂₈_,₂₉_,₃₀. As Christianity rose to power in the West and presided over the Dark Ages, there were repeated violent outbursts against Jews of the most horrible kind. Entire Crusades were aimed at them and the feared Spanish Inquisition paid Jews particular attention. The horror of the holocaust instigated by German Nazis in the 1940s was followed (finally) by the era of European human rights and a movement against racism in general.

The places that are the least anti-Semitical are a few countries of south-east Asia (Laos, the Philippines and Vietnam) and some of the secular liberal democracies of Europe (Sweden, the Netherlands and the UK). The worst countries for antisemitism are Islamic states of the Middle East₃₁, which are undergoing their own Dark Age. Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Morocco, Indonesia, Pakistan and Turkey see the most oppressive and violent actions towards Jews₃₂_,₃₃. Jews in Muslim countries face a host of restrictions and "ceaseless humiliation and regular pogroms"₃₄. In 2004 the European Union Monitoring Center on Racism and Xenophobia reported on violent anti-Jew crimes in the EU and found that that largest group of perpetrators were young Muslim males₃₅.

For more, see:

"Anti-Semitism" by Vexen Crabtree (2017).

4.2. LGBT Equality

#equality #homosexuality #human_rights #ICCPR #intolerance #lebanon #sexuality #tolerance

Lebanon's stance towards homosexuality is nonsensical and pointlessly prejudiced - there is no legal way to conduct a sexually active homosexual relationship:

“Sexual relations outside of marriage [is] criminalized under Lebanon´s penal code. Furthermore, article 534 of the penal code punishes “any sexual intercourse contrary to the order of nature” with up to one year in prison. In recent years, authorities conducted raids to arrest persons allegedly involved in same-sex conduct, some of whom were subjected to torture including forced anal examinations.”
"World Report 2018" by Human Rights Watch (2018)₁₃

It is wrong because (1) adult consensual sexual relations are a matter of personal privacy, (2) homosexuality is rife in nature₃₆ and (3) discriminating against people based on their sexuality is immoral.

LGBT Equality Higher is better₁₁
Pos.		2017 Score₁₁
1	Netherlands	103
2	Belgium	90
3	Sweden	86
	...
164=	Oman	-22
164=	Yemen	-22
166=	Turkmenistan	-24
166=	Lebanon	-24
166=	Zimbabwe	-24
169=	St Kitts & Nevis	-25
169=	Botswana	-25
169=	Ghana	-25
	Asia Avg	-02.1
	World Avg	12.6
q=196.

With regard to LGBT equality, Lebanon ranks 166th in the world.

Discrimination against Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) folk is rife across the world. Legal restrictions co-exist alongside social stigmatisation and physical violence₃₇. LGBT tolerance and equal rights have been fought for country-by-country across the world, often against tightly entrenched cultural and religious opposition. Adult consensual sexual activity is a Human Right, protected by privacy laws₃₈. Despite this, homosexual activity is outlawed in around 80 countries₃₇. The Social & Moral LGBT Equality Index was created to compare countries and regions, granting points to each country for a variety of factors including how long gay sex has been criminalized and the extent of LGBT legal rights. Graded negative points are given for criminality of homosexuality, unequal ages of consent, legal punishments and for not signing international accords on LGBT tolerance. The signs in many developed countries are positive, and things are gradually improving. Europe is by far the least prejudiced region (Scandinavia in particular being exemplary). The Middle East and then Africa are the least morally developed, where cultural bias goes hand-in-hand with state intolerance, all too often including physical violence.

For more, see:

"LGBT Rights Across the World: Which are the Best and Worst Countries?" by Vexen Crabtree (2017).

4.3. Freedom of Thought

#europe #freedom_of_belief #freethought #human_rights #netherlands #religion #religious_tolerance #secularism #the_enlightenment

Freedom of Thought Lower is better₁₀
Pos.		2021₁₀
1=	Belgium	1.0
1=	Taiwan	1.0
1=	Netherlands	1.0
	...
164=	Tunisia	4.0
164=	Rwanda	4.0
164=	Congo, DR	4.0
164=	Lebanon	4.0
164=	Cuba	4.0
164=	Libya	4.0
170=	Nigeria	4.3
170=	Iraq	4.3
	Asia Avg	3.7
	World Avg	3.0
q=196.

Lebanon ranks 161st in the world when it comes to freethought.

Freedom of Religion and Freedom of Belief are upheld in Article 18 the United Nation's Universal Declaration of Human Rights₃₉. It affirms that it is a basic human right that all people are free to change their beliefs and religion as they wish₄₀. No countries voted against this (although eight abstained). This right was first recognized clearly in the policies of religious toleration of the Netherlands and elsewhere in Europe in the post-enlightenment era₄₁ of the 19th century. In democratic countries, freedom of belief and religion is now taken for granted₄₂. In 2016 a study found that over 180 countries in the world had come to guarantee freedom of religion and belief₄₃. The best countries at doing so are Belgium, The Netherlands and Taiwan₁₀_,₄₄ and the worst: Afghanistan, N. Korea, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia₁₀_,₄₅.

Long-term studies have shown that religious violence and persecution both decrease in cultures where religious freedom is guaranteed₄₆. Despite this, there still are many who are strongly against freedom of belief₄₀, including entire cultures and many individual communities of religious believers. Their alternative is that you are not free to believe what you want and they often state that you cannot change religion without being punished (often including the death penalty): this is bemoaned as one of the most dangerous elements of religion₄₇ and "the denial of religious freedoms is inevitably intertwined with the denial of other freedoms"₄₈ and the solution is, everywhere, to allow religious freedom and the freedom of belief.

For more, see:

"Freethought - Freedom of Belief and Freedom of Religion" by Vexen Crabtree (2022).