Country Foundations

Comoros

Constitution in force since 2018, 7,308 words. Rights measured for 2023.

Declared
66%
mean across compared rights
Practiced
50%
mean across compared rights
Gap
−15%
delivers less than promised
Executive respects constitution
38%
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 44%, gap +44%Right to life0%44%+44%Freedom from torture — declared 100%, practiced 44%, gap −56%Freedom from torture100%44%−56%Freedom from slavery and forced labour — declared 50%, practiced 75%, gap +25%Freedom from slavery and forced labour50%75%+25%Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) — declared 100%, practiced 36%, gap −64%Freedom from arbitrary detention (ha…100%36%−64%Right to a fair and public trial — declared 50%, practiced 44%, gap −6%Right to a fair and public trial50%44%−6%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 100%, practiced 44%, gap −56%Due process of law100%44%−56%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 46%, gap −54%Freedom of expression100%46%−54%Freedom of the press — declared 100%, practiced 52%, gap −48%Freedom of the press100%52%−48%Freedom of thought and conscience — declared 100%, practiced 43%, gap −57%Freedom of thought and conscience100%43%−57%Freedom of religion — declared 50%, practiced 50%, gap −0%Freedom of religion50%50%−0%Separation of religion and state — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Separation of religion and stateno practice measure0%——Academic freedom — declared 0%, practiced 63%, gap +63%Academic freedom0%63%+63%Freedom of assembly — declared 0%, practiced 36%, gap +36%Freedom of assembly0%36%+36%Freedom of association — declared 100%, practiced 61%, gap −39%Freedom of association100%61%−39%Right to petition government — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to petition governmentno practice measure0%——Right to form and join trade unions — declared 88%, practiced 50%, gap −38%Right to form and join trade unions88%50%−38%Right to vote and universal suffrage — declared 50%, practiced 55%, gap +5%Right to vote and universal suffrage50%55%+5%Right to privacy — declared 100%, practiced 56%, gap −44%Right to privacy100%56%−44%Freedom of movement — declared 100%, practiced 74%, gap −26%Freedom of movement100%74%−26%Right to asylum — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to asylumno practice measure0%——Right to own property — declared 25%, practiced 70%, gap +45%Right to own property25%70%+45%Equality before the law — declared 100%, practiced 57%, gap −43%Equality before the law100%57%−43%Right to education — declared 0%, practiced 53%, gap +53%Right to education0%53%+53%Right to health care — declared 100%, practiced 44%, gap −56%Right to health care100%44%−56%Right to shelter or housing — declared 0%, practiced 31%, gap +31%Right to shelter or housing0%31%+31%Independent judiciary — declared 100%, practiced 35%, gap −65%Independent judiciary100%35%−65%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
0501001978: constitutional text changed (+38 pts declared)1996: constitutional text changed (+11 pts declared)2001: constitutional text changed (−17 pts declared)2018: constitutional text changed (+18 pts declared)19801990200020102020

Mean across the 23 rights measured on both sides, 1975–2023. Vertical marks show years when the constitutional text changed enough to move the declared score.

Promised, but not delivered

  • Freedom from torture −56%
  • Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) −64%
  • Due process of law −56%
  • Freedom of expression −54%

Delivered, though never promised

  • Right to life +44%
  • Academic freedom +63%
  • Freedom of assembly +36%
  • Right to own property +45%

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)signed only
Economic, Social & Cultural Rights (ICESCR)signed only
Racial Discrimination (ICERD)ratified 2004
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)ratified 1994
Convention against Torture (CAT)ratified 2017
Rights of the Child (CRC)ratified 1993
Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)ratified 2016
Enforced Disappearance (CPED)signed only
Migrant Workers (ICMW)signed only

Compare with

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

Data generated 2026-08-08.