Country Foundations

France

Constitution in force since 1958, 10,180 words. Rights measured for 2023.

Declared
17%
mean across compared rights
Practiced
82%
mean across compared rights
Gap
+64%
delivers more than promised
Executive respects constitution
77%
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 89%, gap +89%Right to life0%89%+89%Freedom from torture — declared 0%, practiced 76%, gap +76%Freedom from torture0%76%+76%Freedom from slavery and forced labour — declared 0%, practiced 76%, gap +76%Freedom from slavery and forced labour0%76%+76%Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) — declared 100%, practiced 74%, gap −26%Freedom from arbitrary detention (ha…100%74%−26%Right to a fair and public trial — declared 0%, practiced 76%, gap +76%Right to a fair and public trial0%76%+76%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 80%, gap +80%Due process of law0%80%+80%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 0%, practiced 94%, gap +94%Freedom of expression0%94%+94%Freedom of the press — declared 0%, practiced 79%, gap +79%Freedom of the press0%79%+79%Freedom of thought and conscience — declared 0%, practiced 83%, gap +83%Freedom of thought and conscience0%83%+83%Freedom of religion — declared 0%, practiced 80%, gap +80%Freedom of religion0%80%+80%Separation of religion and state — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Separation of religion and stateno practice measure100%——Academic freedom — declared 0%, practiced 92%, gap +92%Academic freedom0%92%+92%Freedom of assembly — declared 0%, practiced 82%, gap +82%Freedom of assembly0%82%+82%Freedom of association — declared 0%, practiced 80%, gap +80%Freedom of association0%80%+80%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 69%, gap +69%Right to form and join trade unions0%69%+69%Right to vote and universal suffrage — declared 50%, practiced 93%, gap +43%Right to vote and universal suffrage50%93%+43%Right to privacy — declared 0%, practiced 90%, gap +90%Right to privacy0%90%+90%Freedom of movement — declared 0%, practiced 82%, gap +82%Freedom of movement0%82%+82%Right to asylum — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to asylumno practice measure100%——Right to own property — declared 50%, practiced 95%, gap +45%Right to own property50%95%+45%Equality before the law — declared 100%, practiced 85%, gap −15%Equality before the law100%85%−15%Right to education — declared 0%, practiced 69%, gap +69%Right to education0%69%+69%Right to health care — declared 0%, practiced 70%, gap +70%Right to health care0%70%+70%Right to shelter or housing — declared 0%, practiced 82%, gap +82%Right to shelter or housing0%82%+82%Independent judiciary — declared 100%, practiced 85%, gap −15%Independent judiciary100%85%−15%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
0501001795: constitutional text changed (+6 pts declared)1799: constitutional text changed (−42 pts declared)1804: constitutional text changed (+13 pts declared)1814: constitutional text changed (−6 pts declared)1830: constitutional text changed (+5 pts declared)1848: constitutional text changed (+26 pts declared)1852: constitutional text changed (−33 pts declared)1875: constitutional text changed (−16 pts declared)1946: constitutional text changed (+41 pts declared)1958: constitutional text changed (−30 pts declared)18001850190019502000

Mean across the 23 rights measured on both sides, 1791–2023. 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) −26%

Delivered, though never promised

  • Right to life +89%
  • Freedom from torture +76%
  • Freedom from slavery and forced labour +76%
  • Right to a fair and public trial +76%

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 1980
Economic, Social & Cultural Rights (ICESCR)ratified 1980
Racial Discrimination (ICERD)ratified 1971
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)ratified 1983
Convention against Torture (CAT)ratified 1986
Rights of the Child (CRC)ratified 1990
Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)ratified 2010
Enforced Disappearance (CPED)ratified 2008
Migrant Workers (ICMW)no action

Compare with

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

Data generated 2026-08-08.