South Sudan has fallen 12 places in the 2013 World Press Freedom Index unveiled by Reporters without Borders on Wednesday.
The index charters media freedom across 179 countries.The press freedom watchdog explained that South Sudan fell 12 places after the murder of Isaiah Abraham as news organizations and journalists awaited the approval of three media laws.
Finland, Netherlands, Norway, Luxembourg and Andorra are the top five countries offering the best environment for journalists to do their work.
At the other end of the index are Eritrea, North Korea, Turkmenistan, Syria and Somalia as the countries that least respect media freedom.
Malawi, Ivory Coast, Burma and Afghanistan registered the biggest leaps in the 2013 Index while Mali, Tanzania, Oman and Israel were the biggest fallers.
Brazil, India, China and Russia Ð seen as regional models Ð also dropped in the 2013 media freedom index. China occupies place number 173, seventh from the bottom.