TORONTO

Canada is outranking the United States when it comes to personal, civil and economic freedoms, according to a new Fraser Institute report.

The Human Freedom Index, released Tuesday by the public policy research group, shows Canada ranks sixth, while the U.S. lies many spots back at 20th position. The index, which ranks 152 countries worldwide, is based on information taken from 70 different data sources from 2008 to 2012.

The intention is to measure the degree to which people are free to enjoy classic civil liberties--freedom of speech, religion, individual economic choice, and association and assembly -- in each country.

Hong Kong was at the top of the list, followed by Switzerland, Finland, Denmark and New Zealand in the top five.

Myanmar, Congo and Iran ranked last.

Hong Kong's ranking benefits from its high economic freedom score, the Fraser Institute says. However, the freedom index does not measure democracy, which could have caused the country's ranking to deteriorate.

Canada earned its sixth place because it scored high on a number of freedoms.

"Canada doesn't lead in a single area, but it's high on all areas, like economic freedom," said Fred McMahon, the study editor. "We have a very strong rule of law, good on safety and security. You can't really have freedom without safety and security. And of course, in what you might call political freedoms and associations, speech and so on, we're also top of the class."

The drop in index ranking for the U.S. is partly attributed to the "War on Terror" and declines in property rights related to some Supreme Court decisions as well as a mass of quasi-judicial decisions coming out of the 2008 financial crisis, McMahon told the Toronto Sun.

"The U.S. has declined incredibly over the past decade- and-a-half," he said.

"The U.S. is known as the 'Land of liberty' and Canada is known as 'The land of good governance,' so it's a little surprising that a country whose motto hinges on good government as a motto is well-ahead of a country whose motto hinges on liberty."

The survey also looked at the rule of law and indicators of crime and violence, freedom of movement, limits on freedom due to sexual orientation, and women's freedoms.

HUMAN FREEDOM INDEX

The Fraser Institute's Human Freedom Index ranked 152 countries on data from 2008 to 2012.

THE 10 MOST FREE COUNTRIES

1. Hong Kong

2. Switzerland

3. Finland

4. Denmark

5. New Zealand

6. Canada

7. Australia

8. Ireland

9. United Kingdom

10. Sweden

THE 10 LEAST FREE COUNTRIES

143. Chad

144. Venezuela

145. Ethiopia

146. Algeria

147. Central African Republic

148. Yemen

149. Zimbabwe

150.Myanmar and Congo (tied)

152. Iran

-Source: Fraser Institute