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of us feel that we can walk the streets or drive our cars without worrying about criminal attacks, though there are certainly unsafe areas. Our level of comfort is not universal. In the East Asia Pacific region, some countries meet basic human needs at least as well as the United States, whereas others fare much worse. Within the region, Japan scores the highest, 95.01, putting it in 5th place worldwide. Timor-Leste, fresh from years of a war for independence, scores the lowest, 50.55. Korea, Singapore, New Zealand, Thailand, and Australia score well above the world average. Nations such as Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia score below average.

A Laotian woman washes her clothes in the Mekong River, Southeast Asia’s longest river.

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E AST A SIA AND THE P ACIFIC