It is ironic that in terms of the Statistics for Infections and Deaths due to the Corona Virus Disease 2019 (Covid-19), the Countries in South East Asia (SEA) that has a highest numbers are also the ones with the Freest Press.
A “Free Press” is supposed to be an indication of Transparency since there will supposedly be “Checks and Balances” against whatever Report or Data the Government is giving out, hence the freer the Press, the more transparent the Government is and vice versa, the less free the Press, the less transparent it is.
Both Indonesia and the Philippines are in the Top 2 of Covid-19 Infections/Deaths, but they are also among the highest ranked Press as per the 2019 Press Freedom Ranking made by the organization “Freedom House”.
Indonesia has a score of 61 while the Philippines has a score of 59, and both has been described as “Partly Free”. Below are the rankings of SEA Countries and the indication of their Press Freedom, note that the higher the score the more free the Press is, and vice versa:
* 71 – Timor Leste - Free
* 61 – Indonesia – Partly Free
* 59 – Philippines – Partly Free
* 52 – Malaysia – Partly Free
* 50 – Singapore – Partly Free
* 32 – Thailand – Partly Free
* 28 – Brunei – Not Free
* 25 – Cambodia – Not Free
* 20 – Vietnam – Not Free
* 14 – Laos – Not Free
In Countries with less Press Freedom and therefore less Transparency, then the question here is how accurate are the Covid-19 Stats that they are putting out? I’m not necessarily saying that their data is wrong, but the possibility is definitely there
Indonesia has a score of 61 while the Philippines has a score of 59, and both has been described as “Partly Free”. Below are the rankings of SEA Countries and the indication of their Press Freedom, note that the higher the score the more free the Press is, and vice versa:
* 71 – Timor Leste - Free
* 61 – Indonesia – Partly Free
* 59 – Philippines – Partly Free
* 52 – Malaysia – Partly Free
* 50 – Singapore – Partly Free
* 32 – Thailand – Partly Free
* 28 – Brunei – Not Free
* 25 – Cambodia – Not Free
* 20 – Vietnam – Not Free
* 14 – Laos – Not Free
In Countries with less Press Freedom and therefore less Transparency, then the question here is how accurate are the Covid-19 Stats that they are putting out? I’m not necessarily saying that their data is wrong, but the possibility is definitely there
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