How many more journalists must die, RSF?

Despite the unprecented culling of reporters in occupied Palestine, Israel has lost only 11 spots on RSF’s World Press Free Index; China is still considered dangerous; Malaysia is up by only 19 places

Kuala Lumpur, 5 May: Over 200 journalists - men and women - had been killed in Gaza since Israel's atrocities in Oct 2023. Dozens more havd been detained by Tel Aviv while their workplaces and homes were attacked daily. In Israel itself, the media had been viciously suppressed. 

Yet, the Reporters Sans Frontiers saw it fit to take away 11 rungs from Israel's ranking on its World Press Freedom Index. Hardly a rap on their blood-stained knuckles. 

So out of 180 countries the RSF ranked, Israel is now in 112th place. Sure, it is Israel’s lowest ever (in 2022, before the current regime came to power, Israel was 86th in the world) but it didn’t fall all the way down to the bottom. Despite all its atrocities. it has dropped only into the second-lowest rating out of five to describe the state of press freedom, from “good, satisfactory, problematic, difficult and very serious”.

In short, Israel is rated “difficult” and not “very serious”.

Countries that are deemed lowest in press freedom, ie the “very serious” category, are the likes of Eritrea (180), North Korea (179), China (178), Syria (177), Iran (176) and Afghanistan (175). 

In total, RSF deems 62 countries as worse than Israel. But all these countries, combined, did not murder half as many journalists Israel did with impunity.

For context, the RSF rated Malaysia in 2024 as “difficult” (just as Israel is in 2025). Also in 2024, if you remember, the Madani government led by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrabim, one of the most critical voices in the world against Israel’s atrocities in Gaza, was punished more severely by the RSF: we plunged 34 rungs in that single year! Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil was flabbergasted: not one journalist was imprisoned in Malaysia in 2023, let alone attacked or bombed to smithereens.

This year Malaysia has improved from “difficult” to “problematic”. We are now in 88th position, up 19 rungs from the previous year. 

But, hang on, how is it that more than half of our neighbours in Asean are ranked as worse than the murderous regime of Israel - the Philippines (116), Singapore (123), Indonesia (127), Laos (150), Myanmar (169) and Vietnam (173)?

The RSF’s arguments?

“In the Asia-Pacific region, press freedom and access to reliable news sources are severely compromised by the predominance of regimes — often authoritarian — that strictly control information, often through economic means.

“In many countries, the government has a tight grip on media ownership, allowing them to interfere in outlets’ editorial choices.

“In several countries, the concentration of media ownership in the hands of political magnates threatens media plurality. In India (1151th), Indonesia (127th) and Malaysia (88th), a handful of politically connected conglomerates control most media groups.’

Ah, but how many journalists did Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Prabowo Subianto or Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim ordered killed or detained last year, RSF?

You see the mockery?

It is clear that the 2025 World Press Index by the RSF is seriously, if not dangerously, flawed. It is not just the lack of gumption on the part of the Paris-based organsation to call Israel out and place it right at the bottom, where it belonged, for the worst crimes ever committed by a state against journalism, it is also the audacity to continue judging other countries that they know next to nothing about.

Countries that are nothing like France, where the RSF is based, or the neighbouring Scandinavian countries, which have been hogging the top spots in its annual ranking that started in 2002. In fact, except for Trinidad and Tobago (in 19th place) all the countries in the Top 20 of the 2025 index are in Europe.

I have long lost my faith in the RSF’s press freedon index. Since 2013, to be exact, when it reported in its Freedom index that Brunei was the Southeast Asian country with the most free media. Even my fellow journalists from Brunei were floored by the RSF’s findings that year. Read my posting Brunei has freest Press in ASEAN? and you'll understand why I called them Reporters Without Bothers instead of Borders. (For the record, the RSF has never placed Brunei as No 1 in Asean ever again).

This year, the RSF went out of its way to say that “economic fravgility” has become the primary threat to press freedom worldwide. Its editorial director Anne Bocande said guaranteering media freedom, independence, and pluarality today hinges on establishing stable and transparent financial foundations.

“When news meda are financially strained, they are drawn into a race to attract audience at the expense of quality reporting, and can fall pray to the oligarchs and public authorities who seek to exploit them.

“When journalists are impoverished, they no longer have the means to resist the enemies of the press - those who champion disinformation and propaganda,” she said.

Distraction, I’ve learned, is also a weapon against good journalism, Ms Bocande of RSF. As the UN Human Rights Office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory said in marking the World Press Freedom Day, there can be no talk of a free press if journalists are being killed and threatended for their work.

And if the RSF can’t or won’t even call a spade a spade where Israel is concerned, then it is the one championing disinformation and propaganda.

Ends