For instance, we have big problems here in Finland, which -- on paper -- continuously ranks among the top countries in terms of academic freedom. However, the reality is quite different. Refer for instance to the following results, both of which present quite a chilling picture:

Saikkonen, S. & Väliverronen, E. (2022): The trickle-down of political and economic control: On the organizational suppression of environmental scientists in government science. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/03063127221093397

Väliverronen, E. & Saikkonen, S. (2021): Science communicators intimidated: researchers' freedom of expression and the rise of authoritarian populism. https://jcom.sissa.it/article/pubid/JCOM_2004_2021_A08/