Hong Kong ranks 24th in global rule of law index as overall score falls

Hong Kong has been ranked 24th in the latest global rule of law index, despite slipping slightly in the fundamental rights and criminal justice categories.

The index, released by the World Justice Project on Wednesday, showed the city remained among the world’s top 10 for “absence of corruption” and “order and security”, rising to seventh in the latter category.

The organisation said the global erosion of the rule of law slowed in 2026, but the overall decline continued, with 62 per cent of the 143 jurisdictions surveyed recording falls.

The index assessed jurisdictions across eight aspects of the rule of law, scoring each on a scale of zero to one.

Hong Kong’s overall score fell by 0.01 from last year to 0.71. Its score has declined steadily since peaking at 0.78 in 2016.

The city remained sixth in East Asia and the Pacific.

“Hong Kong’s scores in most of the aspects are similar to those of last year, and its overall ranking continues to be ahead of some Western countries which often unreasonably criticise the rule of law and human rights situation of Hong Kong,” the government said in a statement on Wednesday night.

It added that the implementation of national security laws had better protected the city’s security and maintained “an excellent environment” for business and investment.

Hong Kong remained 63rd globally for “constraints on government powers” and 20th for “civil justice”.

Its score of 0.54 for constraints on government powers was its lowest across the eight categories, while its highest was 0.92 for “Order and Security”.

The city slipped one place in each of the “absence of corruption”, “open government” and “regulatory enforcement” categories, ranking 10th, 29th and 16th respectively.

Hong Kong’s largest declines were in the “fundamental rights” and “criminal justice” categories, with the city slipping two places in each – to 69th and 23rd respectively, from 67th and 21st in 2025.

The government said it would continue to safeguard the rights and freedoms Hong Kong residents enjoyed under the law and step up its publicity and explanatory work.

It also pledged to continue upholding the rule of law in Hong Kong and safeguarding national sovereignty, security and development interests.