Country Foundations

Lebanon

Constitution in force since 1926, 6,296 words. Rights measured for 2023.

Declared
57%
mean across compared rights
Practiced
61%
mean across compared rights
Gap
+4%
delivers more than promised
Executive respects constitution
47%
V-Dem, measured directly

The rights ledger

Each row compares what the constitution declares against what is measured in practice. The two values are always shown together — a gap on its own is easy to misread.

Declared in the constitutionPracticed (measured)Falls short / exceeds
0255075100Right to life — declared 0%, practiced 58%, gap +58%Right to life0%58%+58%Freedom from torture — declared 0%, practiced 57%, gap +57%Freedom from torture0%57%+57%Freedom from slavery and forced labour — declared 0%, practiced 66%, gap +66%Freedom from slavery and forced labour0%66%+66%Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) — declared 100%, practiced 54%, gap −46%Freedom from arbitrary detention (ha…100%54%−46%Right to a fair and public trial — declared 0%, practiced 53%, gap +53%Right to a fair and public trial0%53%+53%Presumption of innocence — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Presumption of innocenceno practice measure0%——Right to legal counsel — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to legal counselno practice measure0%——Protection from self-incrimination — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Protection from self-incriminationno practice measure0%——Protection from double jeopardy — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Protection from double jeopardyno practice measure0%——Due process of law — declared 0%, practiced 37%, gap +37%Due process of law0%37%+37%Trial by jury or lay participation — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Trial by jury or lay participationno practice measure0%——Freedom of expression — declared 100%, practiced 65%, gap −35%Freedom of expression100%65%−35%Freedom of the press — declared 100%, practiced 52%, gap −48%Freedom of the press100%52%−48%Freedom of thought and conscience — declared 100%, practiced 61%, gap −39%Freedom of thought and conscience100%61%−39%Freedom of religion — declared 100%, practiced 75%, gap −25%Freedom of religion100%75%−25%Separation of religion and state — declared 25%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Separation of religion and stateno practice measure25%——Academic freedom — declared 100%, practiced 62%, gap −38%Academic freedom100%62%−38%Freedom of assembly — declared 100%, practiced 65%, gap −35%Freedom of assembly100%65%−35%Freedom of association — declared 100%, practiced 77%, gap −23%Freedom of association100%77%−23%Right to petition government — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to petition governmentno practice measure100%——Right to form and join trade unions — declared 0%, practiced 67%, gap +67%Right to form and join trade unions0%67%+67%Right to vote and universal suffrage — declared 50%, practiced 79%, gap +29%Right to vote and universal suffrage50%79%+29%Right to privacy — declared 100%, practiced 66%, gap −34%Right to privacy100%66%−34%Freedom of movement — declared 50%, practiced 63%, gap +13%Freedom of movement50%63%+13%Right to asylum — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to asylumno practice measure0%——Right to own property — declared 100%, practiced 74%, gap −26%Right to own property100%74%−26%Equality before the law — declared 100%, practiced 63%, gap −37%Equality before the law100%63%−37%Right to education — declared 0%, practiced 49%, gap +49%Right to education0%49%+49%Right to health care — declared 0%, practiced 50%, gap +50%Right to health care0%50%+50%Right to shelter or housing — declared 0%, practiced 45%, gap +45%Right to shelter or housing0%45%+45%Independent judiciary — declared 100%, practiced 59%, gap −41%Independent judiciary100%59%−41%Right to bear arms — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to bear armsno practice measure0%——decl.prac.gap

· marks a right with no provision in that country’s constitution. Scores run 0–100; practiced values are V-Dem indicators normalized across all country-years.

Promise and practice over time

The declared line steps when the constitution changes. The practiced line moves when behaviour does. The distance between those two moments is the part worth looking at.

Declared (the text)Practiced (measured)The text changed
050100195019752000

Mean across the 23 rights measured on both sides, 1926–2023. Vertical marks show years when the constitutional text changed enough to move the declared score.

Promised, but not delivered

  • Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) −46%
  • Freedom of expression −35%
  • Freedom of the press −48%
  • Freedom of thought and conscience −39%

Delivered, though never promised

  • Right to life +58%
  • Freedom from torture +57%
  • Freedom from slavery and forced labour +66%
  • Right to a fair and public trial +53%

Declared internationally

A constitution is only one place a country makes promises. These are the nine core UN human rights treaties.

Civil & Political Rights (ICCPR)ratified 1972
Economic, Social & Cultural Rights (ICESCR)ratified 1972
Racial Discrimination (ICERD)ratified 1971
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)ratified 1997
Convention against Torture (CAT)ratified 2000
Rights of the Child (CRC)ratified 1991
Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)signed only
Enforced Disappearance (CPED)signed only
Migrant Workers (ICMW)no action

Compare with

AfghanistanAlbaniaAlgeriaAngolaArgentinaArmeniaAustraliaAzerbaijanBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBeninBhutanBoliviaBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBrazilBulgariaBurkina FasoBurma/MyanmarBurundiCambodiaCameroonCanadaCape VerdeCentral African RepublicChadChileChinaColombiaComorosCosta RicaCroatiaCubaCyprusDemocratic Republic of the CongoDenmarkDjiboutiDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial GuineaEritreaEstoniaEswatiniEthiopiaFijiFinlandFranceGabonGeorgiaGhanaGreeceGuatemalaGuineaGuinea-BissauGuyana

Data generated 2026-08-08.